i8tw 


^      PEIHGETOIT 
No,..._. , 


6^d 


Twelve  Select 
SERMONS, 


By  D.  L.  MOOD^: 


'preach  the  word.- 


CHICAGO: 

F.  H.  Revell,  148  and  150  Madison  St. 

Publislier  of  Evangelical  Literahire. 


Xntered  according  to  Act  of  ConErress.  in  me  year  188u,  by 

F.  H.  REV  El  L. 
In  the  OflBce  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Wasnington. 


J.   L,  REGAN  &  CO., 

1'  K  1  X  T  E  It  S    AND    BINDERS, 

226  &  228  Lake  Street, 

CHICAGO- 


PREFACE 


In  compliance  with  the  wish  of  many  friends  I 
have  consented  to  the  publication  of  the  following 
Addresses. 

I  deeply  feel  how  partially  and  insufficiently  the 
Glorious  Gospel  of  the  blessed  God  is  represented 
in  them,  but  I  lay  them  at  the  Master's  feet,  pray- 
ing, and  asking  all  my  Christian  friends  to  pray, 
that  they  may  be  the  means  in  their  prijued  form 
of  winning  more  souls  to  Christ  than  rhey  have 
been  when  spoken. 


TWELVE  SELECT  SERMONS. 


"WHERE  ART  THOU?'' 

GENESIS  III.  9. 

The  very  first  thing  that  happened  after  the  news  reached 
heaven  of  the  fall  of  man,  was  that  God  came  straight  down  to 
seek  out  the  lost  one.  As  He  walks  through  the  garden  in  the 
cool  of  the  day,  you  can  hear  Him  calling  "  Adam !  Adam  ! 
Where  art  thou  ?  "  It  was  the  voice  of  grace,  of  mercy,  and  of 
love.  Adam  ought  to  have  taken  the  seeker's  place,  for  he  was 
the  transgressor.  He  had  fallen,  and  he  ought  to  have  gone  up 
and  down  Eden  crying,  "  My  God  !  my  God !  where  art  Thou  ?  " 
But  God  left  heaven  to  seek  through  the  dark  world  for  the 
rebel  who  had  fallen  —  not  to  hurl  him  from  the  face  of  the 
earth,  but  to  plan  him  an  "escape  from  the  misery  of  his  sin.  And 
he  finds  him  —  where  ?  Hiding  from  his  Creator  among  the 
bushes  of  the  garden. 

The  moment  a  man  is  out  of  communion  with  God,  even  thr 
professed  child  of  God,  he  wants  to  hide  away  from  Him. 
When  God  left  Adam  in  the  garden,  he  was  in  communion  with 
his  Creator,  and  God  talked  with  him;  but  now  that  he  has 
fallen,  he  has  no  desire  to  see  his  Creator,  he  has  lost  com- 
munion with  his  God.  He  cannot  bear  to  see  Him,  even  to 
think  of  Him,  and  he  runs  to  hide  from  God.  But  to  his 
hiding-place  his  Maker  follows  him.  "  Where  art  thou,  Adam  ' 
Where  art  thou  ?  " 

Six  thousand  years  have  passed  away,  and  this  text  has  comr 
rolling  down   the  ages.     I  doubt  whether  there  has  been  any 


fl  "  WHERE  ART  THO U  f  " 

one  of  Adam's  sons  who  has  not  heard  it  at  some  period  or 
other  of  his  life  —  sometimes  in  the  midnight  hour  stealing  over 
him  — "  Where  am  I  ?  Who  am  I  ?  Where  am  I  going  ?  and 
what  is  going  to  be  the  end  of  this  ?  "  I  think  it  is  well  for  a 
man  to  pause  and  ask  himself  that  question.  I  would  have  you 
ask  it,  little  boy ;  and  you,  little  girl ;  and  you,  old  man  with 
locks  turning  gray,  and  eyes  growing  dim,  and  natural  force 
abating,  you  who  will  soon  be  in  another  world.  I  do  not  ask 
you  where  you  are  in  the  sight  of  your  neighbours;  I  do  not 
ask  you  where  you  are  in  the  sight  of  your  friends ;  I  do  not 
ask  you  where  you  are  in  the  sight  of  the  community  in  which 
you  live.  It  is  of  very  little  account  where  we  are  in  the  sight 
of  one  another,  it  is  of  very  little  account  what  men  think  of  us ; 
but  it  is  of  vast  importance  what  Go^  thinks  of  us  —  it  is  of  vast 
importance  to  know  where  men  are  in  the  sight  of  God  ;  and 
that  is  the  question  now.  Am  I  in  communion  with  my  Creator, 
or  out  of  communion  ?  If  I  am  out  of  communion,  there  is  no 
peace,  no  joy,  no  happiness.  No  man  on  the  face  of  the  earth, 
who  was  out  of  communion  with  his  Creator,  ever  knew  what 
peace,  and  joy,  and  happiness,  and  true  comfort  are.  He  is  a 
foreigner  to  it.  But  when  we  are  in  communion  with  God, 
there  is  light  all  around  our  path.  So  ask  yourselves  this  ques- 
tion. Do  not  think  I  am  preaching  to  your  neighbours,  but 
remember  I  am  trying  to  speak  to  you,  to  every  one  of  you  as 
if  you  were  alone.  It  was  the  first  question  put  to  man  after 
his  fall,  and  it  was  a  very  small  audience  that  God  had  —  Adam 
and  his  wife.  But  God  was  the  preacher ;  and  although  they 
tried  to  hide,  the  words  came  home  to  them.  Let  them  come 
home  to  you  now.  You  may  think  that  your  life  is  hid,  that 
God  does  not  know  anything  about  you.  But  he  knows  our 
lives  a  great  deal  better  than  we  do ;  and  His  eye  has  been  bent 
upon  us  from  our  earliest  childhood  until  now. 

"  Where  art  thou  ? "  I  should  like  to  divide  my  audience 
into  three  classes  —  the  professed  Christians,  the  Backsliders, 
and  the  Ungodly. 


''WHERE  ART  THOU?  "  ^ 

First,  I  would  like  to  ask  the  professors  this  question,  or 
rather  let  God  ask  it  —  Where  art  thou  ?  What  is  my  position 
in  the  church,  and  among  my  circle  of  acquaintance  ?  Do  ray 
friends  know  me  to  be,  out  and  out,  on  the  Lord's  side  ?  You 
may  have  been  a  professing  Christian  for  twenty  years,  perhaps 
ihirty,  perhaps  forty  years.  Well,  where  are  you  to-night  ?  Are 
you  making  progress  towards  heaven?  And  can  you  give  a 
reason  for  the  hope  that  is  within  you  ?  Suppos^  I  were  to 
ask  those  who  were  really  Christians  here  to  rise,  would  you  be 
ashamed  to  stand  up  ?  Suppose  I  should  ask  every  professed 
child  of  God  here,  "If  you  should  be  cut  down  by  the  hand  of 
death,  have  you  good  reason  to  believe  you  would  be  saved  ?  " 
Would  you  be  willing  to  stand  up  before  God  and  man,  and 
say  that  you  have  good  reason  to  believe  you  are  passed  from 
death  unto  life  ?  Or  would  you  be  ashamed  ?  Run  your  mind 
back  over  the  past  years  :  would  it  be  consistent  iox  you  to  say, 
"  I  am  a  Christian ;  "  and  would  your  life  correspond  with  your 
j)rofession?  It  is  not  what  we  say  so  much  as  how  we  live. 
Actions  speak  louder  than  words.  Do  your  shopmates  know 
that  you  area  Christian.?  Do  your  family  know.?  Do  they 
know  you  to  be  out  and  out  on  the  Lord's  side.?  Let  every 
professed  Christian  ask.  Where  am  I  in  the  sight  of  God  .?  Is 
my  heart  loyal  to  the  King  of  heaven .?  Is  my  life  here  as  it 
should  be  in  the  community  I  live  in .?  Am  I  a  light  in  this 
dark  world  .?  Christ  says,  "  Ye  are  My  witnesses."  Christ  was 
the  Light  of  the  world,  and  the  world  would  not  have  the  true 
Light ;  the  world  rose  up  and  put  out  the  Light,  and  now  Christ 
says,  "  I  leave >'^«  down  here  to  testify  of  Me  ;  I  leave  you  down 
here  as  My  witnesses."  That  is  what  the  apostle  meant  when 
he  said  that  Christians  are  to  be  living  epistles,  known  and  read 
of  all  men.  Then,  am  I  standing  up  for  Jesus  as  I  should  in 
this  dark  world  ?  If  a  man  is  for  God,  let  him  say  so.  If  a 
man  is  for  God,  let  him  come  out  and  be  on  God's  side;  and 
if  he  is  for  the  world,  let  him  be  in  the  world.  This  serving 
God  and  the  world  at  the  same  time  —  this  being  on  both  sides 
at  the  same  time —  is  just  the  curse  of  Christianity  at  the  pres- 


4  ''WHERE  ART  THOU?'' 

ent  time.  It  retards  the  progress  of  Christianity  more  than  any 
other  thing.  "  If  any  man  will  come  after  Me,  let  him  deny 
himself,  and  take  up  his  cross  daily  and  follow  Me." 

I  have  heard  of  a  great  many  people  who  think  if  they  are 
united  to  the  church,  and  have  made  one  profession,  that  will 
do  for  all  the  rest  of  their  days.  But  there  is  a  cross  for  every 
one  of  us  daily.  Oh,  child  of  God,  where  are  you  ?  If  God 
should  appear  to  you  to-night  in  your  bedroom  and  put  the 
question,  what  would  be  your  answer?  Could  you  say,  "  Lord, 
I  am  serving  Thee  with  my  whole  heart  and  strength  ;  I  am 
improving  my  talents  and  preparing  for  the  kingdom  to  come  ?  " 
When  I  was  in  England  in  1867,  there  was  a  merchant  who 
came  over  from  Dublin,  and  was  talking  with  a  business  man 
in  London  ;  and  as  1  happened  to  look  in,  he  introduced  me 
to  the  man  from  Dublin.  Alluding  to  me,  the  latter  said  to 
the  former,  "  Is  this  young  man  all  O  O  .'*  "  Said  the  London 
man,  "What  do  you  mean  by  O  O  ? "  Replied  the  Dublin 
man,  "7^  he  0ut-a7id-0ut  for  Christ?  "  I  tell  you  it  burned 
down  into  my  soul.  It  means  a  good  deal  to  be  O  O  for  Christ ; 
but  that  is  what  all  Christians  ought  to  be,  and  their  influence 
would  be  felt  on  the  world  very  soon,  if  men  who  are  on  the 
Lord's  side  would  come  out  and  take  their  stand,  and  lift  up 
their  voices  in  season  and  out  of  season.  As  I  have  said,  there 
are  a  great  many  in  the  church  who  make  one  profession,  and 
that  is  about  all  you  hear  of  them ;  and  when  they  come  to  die 
you  have  to  go  and  hunt  up  some  musty  old  church  records  to 
know  whether  they  were  Christians  or  not.  God  won't  do  that. 
I  have  an  idea  that  when  Daniel  died,  all  the  men  in  Babylon 
knew  whom  he  served.  There  was  no  need  for  them  to  hunt 
up  old  books.  His  life  told  his  story.  What  we  want  is  men 
with  a  little  courage  to  stand  up  for  Christ.  When  Christianity 
wakes  up,  and  every  child  that  belongs  to  the  Lord  is  willing 
to  speak  for  Him,  is  willing  to  work  for  Him,  and,  if  need  be, 
willing  to  die  for  Him,  then  Christianity  will  advance,  and  we 
shall  see  the  work  of  the  Lord  prosper.  There  is  one  thing 
which  I  fear  more  than  anything  else,  and  that  is  the  dead  cold 


''WHERE  ART  THOU  J 

formalism  of  the  Church  of  God.  Talk  about  Xh^  isms'  Put 
them  all  together,  and  I  do  not  fear  them  so  much  as  dead, 
cold  formalism.  Talk  about  X\it  false  isms  !  There  is  none  so 
dangerous  as  this  dead,  cold  formalism,  which  has  come  right 
into  the  heart  of  the  Church.  There  are  so  many  of  us  just 
sleeping  and  slumbering  while  souls  all  around  are  perishing. 
I  believe  honestly  that  we  professed  Christians  are  all  half- 
asleep.  Some  of  us  are  beginning  to  rub  our  eyes  and  to  get 
them  half-opened,  but  as  a  whole  we  are  asleep. 

There  was  a  little  story  going  the  round  of  the  American  press 
that  made  a  great  impression  upon  me  as  a  father.  A  father 
took  his  little  child  out  into  the  field  one  Sabbath,  and,  it  being 
a  hot  day,  he  lay  down  under  a  beautiful  shady  tree.  The  little 
child  ran  about  gathering  wild  flowers  and  little  blades  of  grass, 
and  coming  to  its  father  and  saying,  "  Pretty  !  pretty  !  "  At 
last  the  father  fell  asleep,  and  while  he  was  sleeping  the  little 
child  wandered  away.  When  he  awoke,  his  first  thought  was, 
"  Where  is  my  child  }  "  He  looked  all  around,  but  he  could 
not  see  him.  He  shouted  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  but  all  he 
heard  was  the  echo  of  his  own  voice.  Running  to  a  little  hill, 
ne  looked  around  and  shouted  again.  No  response !  Then 
going  to  a  precipice  at  some  distance,  he  looked  down,  and 
there  upon  the  rocks  and  briars,  he  saw  the  mangled  form  of 
riis  loved  child.  He  rushed  to  the  spot,  took  up  the  lifeless 
corpse  and  hugged  it  to  his  bosom,  and  accused  himself  of  being 
the  murderer  of  his  child.  While  he  was  sleeping  his  child  had 
wandered  over  the  precipice.  I  thought  as  I  heard  that,  what 
a  picture  of  the  church  of  God  ! 

How  many  fathers  and  mothers,  how  many  Christian  men, 
are  sleeping  now  while  their  children  wander  over  the  terrible 
precipice  right  into  the  bottomless  pit  of  hell.  Father,  where  is 
your  boy  to-night }  It  may  be  just  out  there  in  some  public- 
house  ;  it  may  be  reeling  through  the  streets;  it  may  be  pressing 
onwards  to  a  drunkard's  grave.  Mother,  where  is  your  son .? 
Is  he  in  the  house  of  the  publican  drinking  away  his  soul  —  every- 
thing that  is  dear  and  sacred  to  him  ?     Do  you  know  where  your 


6  "  WHERE  ART  THOUV 

boy  is  ?  Father,  you  have  been  a  professed  Christian  for  forty 
years ;  where  are  your  children  to-night  ?  Have  you  lived  so 
;,^odly,  and  so  Christ-like,  that  you  can  say.  Follow  me  as  I  fol- 
lowed Christ  ?  Are  those  children  walking  in  wisdom ;  are 
they  on  their  way  to  glory ;  have  they  been  gathered  into  the 
fold  of  Christ ;  are  their  names  written  in  the  Lamb's  Book  of 
Life  ?  How  many  fathers  and  mothers  to-day  would  be  able 
to  answer  ?  Did  you  ever  stop  to  think  that  you  were  to  blame ; 
that  you  had  not  been  faithful  to  your  children  ?  Depend  upon 
it,  as  long  as  the  church  is  living  so  much  like  the  world,  we 
cannot  expect  our  children  to  be  brought  into  the  fold.     Come, 

0  Lord,  and  wake  up  every  mother,  and  may  every  one  of  us 
who  are  parents  feel  the  worth  of  the  souls  of  the  children  that 
God  has  given  us.  May  they  never  bring  our  grey  hairs  with 
sorrow  to  to  the  grave,  but  may  they  become  a  blessing  to  the 
church  and  to  the  world.  Not  long  ago  the  only  daughter  of  a 
wealthy  friend  of  mine  sickened  and  died.  The  father  and 
mother  stood  by  her  dying  bed.  He  had  spent  all  his  time  in 
accumulating  wealth  for  her  ;  she  had  been  introduced  into  gay 
and  fashionable  society ;  but  she  had  been  taught  nothing  of 
Christ.  As  she  came  to  the  brink  of  the  river  of  death,  she 
said,  "  Won't  you  help  me  ;  it  is  very  dark,  and  the  stream  is 
bitter  cold."  They  wrung  their  hands  in  grief,  but  could  do 
nothing  for  her ;  and  the  poor  girl  died  in  darkness  and  despair. 
What  was  their  wealth  to  them?  And  yet,  you  mothers  and 
fathers  are  doing  the  same  thing  in  London  to-day,  by  ignoring 
the  work  God  has  given  you  to  do.  I  beseech  you,  then,  each 
one  of  you,  begin  to  labour  now  for  the  souls  of  your  children  ! 

A  young  man,  some  time  ago,  lay  dying,  and  his  mother 
thought  he  was  a  Christian.  One  day,  passing  his  room  doon 
she  heard  him  say,  "  Lost !  lost !  lost !  "  The  mother  ran  into 
the  room  and  cried,  "  My  boy,  is  it  possible  you  have  lost  your 
hope  in  Christ,  now  you  are  dying  ?  "  "  No,  mother,  it  is  not 
that ;  I  have  a  hope  beyond  the  grave,  but  I  have  lost  my  life. 

1  have  lived  twenty-four  years,  and  done  nothing  for  the  Son 
of  God,  and  now  I  am  dying.     My  life  has  been  spent  for 


••  WHERE  ART  THOUr'  7 

myself ;  I  have  lived  for  this  world,  and  now,  while  I  am  dying, 
I  have  given  myself  to  Christ;  but  my  life  is  lost."  Would  it 
not  be  said  of  many  of  us,  if  we  should  be  cut  down,  that  our 
lives  have  been  almost  a  failure  —  perhaps  entirely  a  failure  as 
far  as  leading  any  one  else  to  Christ  is  concerned?  Young 
lady  !  are  you  working  for  the  Son  of  God  ?  Are  you  trying 
to  win  some  soul  to  Christ  ?  Have  you  tried  to  get  some  friend 
or  companion  to  have  her  name  written  in  the  book  of  life?  Or 
would  you  say,  "Lost,  lost!  long  years  have  rolled  away  since 
I  became  a  child  of  God,  and  I  have  never  had  the  privilege  of 
leading  one  soul  to  Christ  ?  "  If  there  is  one  professed  child 
of  God  who  never  had  the  joy  of  leading  even  one  soul  into  the 
kingdom  of  God,  oh  !  let  him  begin  at  once.  There  is  no 
greater  privilege  on  earth.  And  I  believe,  my  friends,  there 
has  never  been  a  time,  in  our  day,  at  least,  when  work  for  Christ 
was  more  needed  than  at  present.  I  do  not  believe  there  ever 
was  in  your  day  or  mine  a  time  when  the  Spirit  of  God  was 
more  poured  out  upon  the  world.  There  is  not  a  part  of  Chris- 
tendom where  the  work  is  not  being  carried  on  ;  and  it  looks 
very  much  as  if  the  glad  tidings  were  just  going  to  take,  as  it 
were,  a  fresh  start,  and  go  round  the  globe.  Is  it  not  time  that 
the  Church  of  God  should  wake  up  and  come  to  the  help  of  the 
Lord  as  one  man,  and  strive  to  beat  back  those  dark  waves  of 
death  that  roll  through  our  streets,  bearing  upon  their  bosom 
the  noblest  and  the  best  we  have  ?  Oh,  may  God  wake  up  the 
Church !  And  let  us  trim  our  lights,  and  go  forth  and  work  for 
the  kingdom  of  His  Son. 

Now,  Secondly,  let  me  talk  a  little  while  to  those  who  have 
gone  back  into  the  world  —  to  the  Backslider.  It  may  be  you 
came  to  some  great  city  a  few  years  ago  a  professed  Christian. 
You  were  member  of  a  church  once,  and  a  teacher  in  the  Sab- 
bath-school, perhaps ;  but  when  you  came  among  strangers  you 
thought  you  would  just  wait  a  little  —  perhaps  take  a  class  by 
and  by.  So  you  gave  up  teaching  in  the  Sunday-school ;  you 
gave  up  all  work  for  Christ.    Then  in  your  new  church  you  did 


6  ''WHERE  ART  THOUt** 

not  receive  the  attention  or  the  warm  welcome  that  you  expected, 
and  you  got  into  the  habit  of  staying  away.  You  have  gone  so 
far  now,  that  you  are  found  in  the  theatre,  perhaps,  and  the 
companion  of  blasphemers  and  drunkards.  Perhaps  I  am  speak  - 
ing  now  to  some  one  who  has  been  away  from  his  father's  house 
for  many  years.  Come,  now,  backslider,  tell  me,  are  you  happy? 
Have  you  had  one  happy  hour  since  you  left  Christ?  Does  the 
world  satisfy  you,  or  those  husks  that  you  have  got  in  the  far 
country }  I  have  travelled  a  good  deal,  but  I  never  found  a 
happy  backslider  in  my  life.  I  never  knew  a  man  who  was 
really  born  of  God  that  ever  could  find  the  world  satisfy  him 
afterwards.  Do  you  think  the  Prodigal  Son  was  satisfied  in 
that  foreign  country.?  Ask  the  prodigals  in  this  city  if  they  are 
truly  happy.  You  know  they  are  not.  "  There  is  no  peace, 
saith  my  God  to  the  wicked."  There  is  no  joy  for  the  man  in 
rebellion  against  his  Creator.  Supposing  he  has  tasted  the 
heavenly  gift,  and  been  in  communion  with  God,  and  had  sweet 
fellowship  with  the  King  of  Heaven,  and  had  pleasant  hours  of 
service  for  the  Master,  but  has  backslidden,  is  it  possible  that 
be  can  be  happy  }  If  he  is,  it  is  good  evidence  he  was  never 
really  converted.  If  a  man  has  been  born  again,  and  has 
received  the  heavenly  nature,  this  world  can  never  satisfy  the 
cravings  of  his  nature.  Oh,  backslider,  I  pity  you  !  But  I  want 
to  tell  you  that  the  Lord  Jesus  pities  you  a  good  deal  mor  than 
any  one  else  can.  He  knows  how  bitter  your  life  is  ;  He  knows 
how  dark  your  life  is;  He  wants  you  to  come  home.  Oh,  back- 
slider, come  home  to-night !  I  have  a  loving  message  from  your 
Father.  The  Lord  wants  you,  and  calls  you  back  to-night 
"  Come  home,  oh  wanderer,  this  night ;  return  from  the  dark 
mountains  of  sin."  Return,  and  your  Father  will  give  you  a 
warm  welcome.  I  know  that  the  devil  has  told  you  that  God 
won't  have  anything  to  do  with  you,  because  you  have  wandered 
away.  If  that  is  true,  there  would  be  very  few  men  in  heaven. 
David  backslid ;  Abraham  and  Jacob  turned  away  from  God ; 
I  do  not  believe  there  is  a  saint  in  heaven  but  at  some  time  oi 
his  life  with  hi*;  heart  has  backslidden  from  God.     Pcrhapi  not 


''WHERE  ART   THOUf*'  9 

in  his  life,  but  in  his  heart.  The  prodigal's  heart  got  into  the 
far  country  before  his  body  got  there.  Backslider !  to-night 
come  home.  Your  Father  does  not  want  you  to  stay  away. 
Think  you  the  prodigal's  father  was  not  anxious  for  him  to  come 
home  all  those  long  years  he  was  there  ?  Every  year  the  father 
was  looking  and  longing  for  him  to  return  home.  So  God  wants 
you  to  come  home.  I  do  not  care  how  far  you  have  wandered 
away ;  the  great  Shepherd  will  receive  you  back  into  the  fold 
to-night.  Did  you  ever  hear  of  a  backslider  coming  home,  and 
God  not  willing  to  receive  him .''  I  have  heard  of  earthly  fathers 
and  mothers  not  being  willing  to  receive  back  their  sons ;  but 
I  defy  any  man  to  say  he  ever  knew  a  really  honest  backslider 
want  to  get  home,  but  God  was  willing  to  take  him  in. 

A  number  of  years  ago,  before  any  railway  came  into  Chicago, 
they  used  to  bring  in  the  grain  from  the  Western  prairies  in 
wagons  for  hundreds  of  miles,  so  as  to  have  it  shipped  off  by 
the  Lakes.  There  was  a  father  who  had  a  large  farm  out  there, 
and  who  used  to  preach  the  gospel  as  well  as  attend  to  his  farm. 
One  day,  when  church  business  engaged  him,  he  sent  his  son 
to  Chicago  with  grain.  He  waited  and  waited  for  his  boy  to 
return,  but  he  did  not  come  home.  At  last  he  could  wait  no 
longer,  so  he  saddled  his  horse  and  rode  to  the  place  where  his 
son  had  sold  the  graift.  He  found  that  he  had  been  there  and 
got  the  money  for  the  grain ;  then  he  began  to  fear  that  his  boy 
had  been  murdered  and  robbed.  At  last,  with  the  aid  of  a 
detective,  they  tracked  him  to  a  gambling  den,  where  they  found 
that  he  had  gambled  away  the  whole  of  his  money.  In  hopes 
of  winning  it  back  again,  he  then  had  sold  the  team,  and  lost 
that  money  too.  He  had  fallen  among  thieves,  and  like  the 
man  who  was  going  to  Jericho,  they  stripped  him,  and  then  they 
cared  no  more  about  him.  What  could  he  do  ?  He  was 
ashamed  to  go  home  to  meet  his  father,  and  he  fled.  The 
father  knew  what  it  all  meant.  He  knew  the  boy  thought  he 
would  be  very  angry  with  him.  He  was  grieved  to  think  that 
his  boy  should  have  such  feelings  towards  him.  That  is  jusi 
ezjuitly  like  the  sinner.     He  thinks  becjimse  he   has  sinned, 


lo  "  WHERE  AR  T  THO  U  ?  " 

God  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  him.  But  what  did  that 
father  do  ?  Did  he  say,  "  Let  the  boy  go  ?  "  No ;  he  went 
after  him.  He  arranged  his  business  and  started  after  the 
boy.  That  man  went  from  town  to  town,  from  city  to  city. 
He  would  get  the  ministers  to  let  him  preach,  and  at  the  close 
he  would  tell  his  story.  "  I  have  got  a  boy  who  is  a  wanderer 
on  the  face  of  the  earth  somewhere."  He  would  describe 
his  boy  and  say,  "  If  you  ever  hear  of  him  or  see  him,  will 
you  not  write  to  me  }  "  At  last  he  found  that  he  had  gone  to 
California,  thousands  of  miles  away.  Did  that  father  say, 
"  Let  him  go  ?  "  No  ;  off  he  went  to  the  Pacific  coast,  seeking 
the  boy.  He  went  to  San  Francisco,  and  advertised  in  the 
newspapers  that  he  would  preach  at  such  a  church  on  such  a 
day.  When  he  had  preached  he  told  his  story,  in  hopes  that 
the  boy  might  have  seen  the  advertisement  and  come  to  the 
church.  When  he  had  done,  away  under  the  gallery  there 
was  a  young  man  who  waited  until  the  audience  had  gone 
out;  then  he  came  towards  the  pulpit.  The  father  looked, 
and  saw  it  was  that  boy,  and  he  ran  to  him,  and  pressed  him 
to  his  bosom.  The  boy  wanted  to  confess  what  he  had  done, 
but  not  a  word  would  the  father  hear.  He  forgave  him  freely, 
and  took  him  to  his  home  once  more. 

Oh,  prodigal,  you  may  be  wandering  on  the  dark  mountains 
of  sin,  but  God  wants  you  to  come  home.  The  devil  has  been 
telling  you  lies  about  God ;  you  think  He  will  not  receive  you 
back.  I  tell  you.  He  will  welcome  you  this  minute  if  you 
will  come.  Say,  "  I  will  arise  and  go  to  my  Father."  May 
God  incline  you  to  take  this  step.  There  is  not  one  whom 
Jesus  has  not  sought  far  longer  than  that  father.  There  has 
not  been  a  day  since  you  left  Him  but  he  has  followed  you. 
I  do  not  care  what  the  past  has  been,  or  how  black  your  life, 
he  will  receive  you  back.  Arise  then,  O  backslider,  and  come 
home  once  more  to  your  Father's  house. 

Not  long  ago,  in  Edinburgh,  a  lady  who  was  an  earnest 
Christian  worker,  found  a  young  woman  whose  feet  had  taken 
hold  of  hell,  and  wno  was  pressing  onwards  to  a  harlot's  grarc. 


''WHERE  ART  THOU?  "  ii 

The  lady  begged  her  to  go  back  to  her  home,  but  she  said  no, 
her  parents  would  never  receive  her.  This  Christian  woman 
knew  what  a  mother's  heart  was ;  so  she  sat  down  and  wrote 
a  letter  to  the  mother,  telling  her  how  she  had  met  her 
daughter,  who  was  sorry,  and  wanted  to  return.  The  next  post 
brought  an  answer  back,  and  on  the  envelope  was  written, 
"Immediately  —  immediately!"  That  was  a  mother's  heart. 
They  opened  the  letter.  Yes,  she  was  forgiven.  They  wanted 
her  back,  and  they  sent  money  for  her  to  come  immediately. 
Sinner,  that  is  the  proclamation,  "  Come  immediately.'*  That  is 
what  the  great  and  loving  God  is  saying  to  every  wandering 
sinner  —  immediately.  Yes,  backslider,  come  home  to-night. 
He  will  give  you  a  warm  welcome,  and  there  will  be  joy  in 
heaven  over  your  return.     Come  now,  for  everything  is  ready 

A  friend  of  mine  said  to  me  some  time  ago.  Did  you  ever 
notice  what  the  prodigal  lost  by  going  into  that  country  ?  He 
lost  hi^  food.  That  is  what  every  poor  backslider  loses.  They 
get  no  manna  from  heaven.  The  Bible  is  a  closed  book  to 
them  ;  they  see  no  beauty  in  the  Word  of  God. 

Then  the  prodigal  lost  his  work.  He  was  a  Jew,  and  they 
made  him  take  care  of  swine ;  that  was  all  loss  for  a  Jew. 
So  every  backslider  Iqges  his  work.  He  cannot  do  anything 
for  God  ;  he  cannot  work  for  eternity.  He  is  a  stumbling- 
block  to  the  world.  My  friend,  do  not  let  the  world  stumble 
over  you  into  hell. 

The  prodigal  also  lost  his  testimony.  Who  believed  him  '' 
I  can  imagine  some  of  these  men  came  along,  natives  ol 
that  country,  and  they  saw  this  poor  prodigal  in  his  rags,  bare- 
footed and  bare  headed.  There  he  stands  among  the  swine, 
and  someone  says  to  another,  **  Look  at  that  poor  wretch." 
**  What,"  he  says,  "  do  you  call  me  a  poor  wretch  ?  My  father 
is  a  wealthy  man  ;  he  has  got  more  clothes  in  his  wardrobe 
than  you  ever  saw  in  your  life.  My  father  is  a  man  of  great 
wealth  and  position."  Do  you  suppose  these  men  would 
believe  him  ?  "  That  poor  wretch  the  son  of  a  wealth) 
man!"      Not  one  of   them  would  believe  him.     "If  he  had 


la  ''WHERE  ART  THOUf" 

got  such  a  wealthy  father  he  would  go  to  him."  So  with 
the  backsliders ;  the  world  does  not  believe  that  they  are  the 
sons  of  a  King.  They  say,  "Why  don't  they  go  to  Him,  if 
there  is  bread  enough  and  to  spare  ?  Why  don't  they  go 
home  ? " 

Then,  another  thing  the  prodigal  lost  was  his  home.  He  had 
no  home  in  that  foreign  country.  As  long  as  his  money  lasted, 
he  was  quite  poj^ular  in  the  public-house  and  among  his  ac- 
quaintances ;  he  had  professed  friends,  but  as  soon  as  his  money 
ivas  gone,  where  were  his  friends  }  That  is  the  condition  of 
every  poor  backslider  in  London. 

But  now  I  can  imagine  some  one  saying,  "  There  would  be 
little  use  of  me  attempting  to  come  back.  In  a  few  days  I 
should  just  be  where  I  was  again.  I  should  like  very  much  to 
go  to  my  Father's  home  again,  but  I'm  afraid  I  wouldn't  stay 
there."  Well,  just  picture  this  scene.  The  poor  prodigal  has 
got  home,  and  the  father  has  killed  the  fatted  calf;  and  there 
they  are,  sitting  at  the  table  eating.  I  can  imagine  that  was 
about  the  sweetest  morsel  he  ever  got  —  perhaps  the  nicest 
dinner  he  ever  had  in  his  life.  His  father  sits  opposite ;  he  is 
full  of  joy,  and  his  heart  is  leaping  within  him.  All  at  once  he 
sees  his  boy  weeping.  "  My  son,  what  are  you  weeping  for  ? 
Are  you'  not  glad  to  have  got  home  ?  "  "  Oh,  yes,  father ;  I 
never  was  so  glad  as  I  am  to-day  :  but  I  am  so  afraid  I  will  go 
back  into  that  foreign  country !  "  Why,  you  cannot  imagine 
SHch  a  thing !  When  you  have  got  one  meal  in  your  Father's 
House,  you  will  never  be  inclined  to  wander  away  again. 

Now  let  me  speak  to  the  Third  class.  "  If  the  righteous 
scarcely  be  saved,  where  shall  the  ungodly  and  the  sinner 
appear }  "  Sinner,  what  is  to  become  of  you  }  How  shall  you 
escape  1  "  Where  art  thou  t "  Is  it  true  that  you  are  living 
without  God  and  without  hope  in  the  world  ?  Did  you  ever 
stop  to  think  what  would  become  of  your  soul  if  you  should  be 
taken  away  by  a  sudden  stroke  of  illness  —  where  you  would 
stand  in  eternity?     I  read  that  the  sinner  is  without  God,  with- 


"  WHERE  ART  THO  U  ?  "  13 

ont  hope,  and  without  excuse.  If  you  are  not  saved,  what 
excuse  will  you  have  to  give  ?  You  cannot  say  that  it  is  God's 
fault.  He  is  only  too  anxious  to  save  you.  I  want  to  tell  you 
to-night  that  you  can  be  saved  if  you  will.  If  you  really  want 
'0  pass  from  death  to  life,  if  you  want  to  become  an  heir  of 
eternal  life,  if  you  want  to  become  a  child  of  God,  make  up 
your  mind  this  night  that  you  will  seek  the  kingdom  of  God.  I 
tell  you,  upon  the  authority  of  this  Word,  that  if  you  seek  the 
kingdom  of  God  you  will  find  it.  No  man  ever  sought  Christ 
•vith  a  heart  to  find  Him  who  did  not  find  Him.  I  never  knew 
.1  man  make  up  his  mind  to  have  the  question  settled,  but  it  was 
settled  soon.  This  last  year  there  has  been  a  solemn  feeling 
stealing  over  me,  I  am  what  they  call  in  the  middle  of  life,  in 
ihe  prime  of  life.  I  look  upon  life  as  a  man  who  has  reached 
the  top  of  a  hill,  and  just  begins  to  go  down  the  other  side.  I 
have  got  to  the  top  of  the  hill,  if  I  should  live  the  full  term  of 
life  —  threescore  years  and  ten  —  and  am  just  on  the  other  side. 
I  am  speaking  to  many  now  who  are  also  on  the  top  of  the  hill, 
and  I  ask  you,  if  you  are  not  Christians,  just  to  pause  a  few 
minutes,  and  ask  yourselves  where  you  are.  Let  us  look  back  on 
the  hill  that  we  have  been  climbing.  W'hat  do  you  see  ?  Yon- 
der is  the  cradle.  It  is  not  far  away.  How  short  life  is  !  It 
all  seems  but  as  yesterday.  Look  along  up  the  hill,  and  yonder 
is  a  tombstone ;  it  marks  the  resting-place  of  a  loved  mother. 
When  that  mother  died,  did  you  not  promise  God  that  you 
\yould  serve  Hira.^  Did  you  not  say  that  your  mother's  God 
should  become  your  God  ?  And  did  you  not  take  her  hand  in 
the  stillness  of  the  dying  hour,  and  say,  "  Yes,  mother,  I  will 
meet  you  in  heaven  !  "  And  have  you  kept  that  promise  ?  Are 
you  trying  to  keep  it  ?  Ten  years  have  rolled  away  :  fifteen 
years  —  but  are  you  any  nearer  God  .!*  Did  the  promise  work 
any  improvement  in  you  .'  No,  your  heart  is  getting  harder ; 
the  night  is  getting  darker ;  by  and  by  death  will  be  throwing 
its  shadows  round  you.  My  friend,  Where  art  thou  ?  Look 
again.  A  little  further  up  the  hill  there  is  another  tombstone. 
It  marks  the  resting-place  of  a  little  child.     It  may  have  been 


I  4  "  WHERE  AR  T  TIIO  U  V 

i  liule  lovely  girl  —  perhaps  her  name  was  Mary;  or  it  may 
have  been  a  boy  —  Charley;  and  when  that  child  was  taken 
from  you,  did  you  not  promise  God,  and  did  you  not  promise 
the  child,  that  you  would  meet  it  in  heaven  ?  Is  the  promise 
kept  ?  Think  !  Are  you  still  fighting  against  God  ?  Are  you 
still  hardening  your  heart  ?  Sermons  that  would  have  moved 
you  five  years  ago  —  do  they  touch  you  now  ? 

Once  more  look  down  the  hill.  Yonder  there  is  a  grave;  you 
cannot  tell  how  many  days,  or  weeks,  or  years  it  is  away ;  you 
are  hastening  towards  that  grave.  Even  should  you  live  the 
life  allotted  to  man,  many  of  you  are  near  the  end,  you  are  get- 
ting very  feeble,  and  your  locks  are  turning  grey.  It  may  be 
the  coffin  is  already  made  that  this  body  shall  belaid  in ;  it  may 
be  that  the  shroud  is  already  waiting.  My  friend,  is  it  not  the 
height  of  madness  to  put  off  salvation  so  long.'*  Undoubtedly 
I  am  speaking  to  some  who  will  be  in  eternity  a  week  from  now. 
In  a  large  audience  like  this,  during  the  next  week  death  will 
surely  come  and  snatch  some  away ;  it  may  be  the  speaker,  or 
it  may  be  some  one  who  is  listening.  Why  put  off  the  question 
another  day?  Why  say  to  the  Lord  Jesus  again  to-night,  "  Go 
thy  way  for  this  time ;  when  I  have  a  convenient  season,  I  will 
call  for  Thee  .'*  "  Why  not  let  him  come  in  to-night  ?  ^Vhy 
not  open  your  heart,  and  say,  "  King  of  Glory,  come  in  ?  " 

Will  there  ever  be  a  better  opportunity  ?  Did  not  you  promise 
ten,  fifteen,  twenty,  thirty  years  ago  that  you  would  serve  God.? 
Some  of  you  said  you  would  do  it  when  you  got  married  and 
settled  down  ;  some  of  you  said  you  would  serve  Him  when  you 
were  your  own  master.     Have  you  attended  to  it  ? 

You  know  there  are  three  steps  to  the  lost  world  ;  let  me  give 
you  their  names.  The  first  is  Neglect  All  a  man  has  to  do  is 
to  neglect  salvation,  and  that  will  take  him  to  the  lost  world. 
Some  people  say,  "  What  have  I  done  !  "  Why,  if  you  merely 
neglect  salvation,  you  will  be  lost.  I  am  on  a  swift  river,  and 
lying  in  the  bottom  of  my  little  boat.  Down  yonder,  ten  miles 
below,  is  the  great  cataract.  Every  one  that  goes  over  it  per- 
•shes.     I  need  not   row  the  ooat  down ;  I  have  only  to  pull  in 


''WHERE  ART  THOUV  15 

the  oars,  and  fold  my  arms  and  neglect.  So  all  that  a  man  hu 
to  do  is  to  fold  his  arms  in  the  current  of  life,  and  he  will  drift 
onwards  and  be  lost. 

The  second  step  is  Refusal.  If  I  met  you  at  the  door  and 
pressed  this  question. on  you,  you  would  say,  "  Not  to-night, 
Mr.  Moody,  not  to-night ;  "  and  if  I  repeated,  "  I  want  you  to 
press  into  the  kingdom  of  God,"  you  would  politely  refuse  :  "  I 
will  not  become  a  Christian  to-night,  thank  you  ;  I  know  I 
ought,  but  I  uwnt  to-night." 

Then  the  last  step  is  to  Despise  it.  Some  of  you  have  already 
got  on  the  lower  round  of  the  ladder.  You  despise  Christ. 
You  hate  Christ,  you  hate  Christianity  ;  you  hate  the  best 
people  on  the  earth  and  the  best  friends  you  have  got;  and  if 
I  were  to  offer  you  the  Bible,  you  would  tear  it  up  and  put  your 
foot  upon  it.  Oh,  despisers !  you  will  soon  be  in  another  world. 
Make  haste  and  repent  and  turn  to  God.  Now,  on  which  step 
are  you,  my  friend  ;  neglecting,  or  refusing,  or  despising?  Bear 
in  mind  that  a  great  many  are  taken  off  from  the  first  step ; 
they  die  in  neglect.  And  a  great  many  are  taken  away  refus- 
ing.    And  a  great  many  are  on  the  last  step,  despising  salvation. 

A  few  years  ago  they  neglected^  then  they  got  to  refuse;  and 
now  they  despise  Christianity  and  Christ.  They  hate  the  sound 
of  the  church  bell ;  they  hate  the  Bible  and  the  Christian  ;  they 
curse  the  very  ground  that  we  walk  on.  But  one  more  step 
and  they  are  gone.  Oh  ye  despisers,  I  set  before  you  life  and 
death ;  which  will  you  choose  }  When  Pilate  had  Christ  on 
his  hands,  he  said,  "  What  shall  I  do  with  him  t  "  and  the  mul- 
titude cried  out,  **Away  with  Him  !  crucify  Him!  "  Young  men, 
is  that  your  language  to-night  ?  Do  you  say,  "Away  with  this 
gospel !  Away  with  Christianity !  Away  with  your  prayers 
your  sermons,  your  gospel  sounds  !  I  do  not  want  Christ.!* ' 
Or  will  you  be  wise  and  say,  "  Lord  Jesus,  I  want  Thee,  I  need 
Thee,  I  will  have  Thee  ?  "  Oh,  may  God  bring  you  to  that 
decision  I 


THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCR' 


ROMANS    III.    2  2. 


That  is  one  of  the  hardest  truths  man  has  to  learn.  We  are 
apt  to  think  that  we  are  just  a  little  better  than  our  neighbors, 
and  if  we  find  they  arg  a  little  better  than  ourselves,  we  go  to 
work  and  try  to  pull  them  down  to  our  level.  If  you  want  to 
find  out  who  and  what  man  is,  go  to  the  third  chapter  of 
Romans,  and  there  the  whole  story  is  told.  "  There  is  none 
righteous,  no  not  one."  "  All  have  sinned  and  come  short." 
A//.  Some  men  like  to  have  their  lives  written  before  they 
die ;  if  any  of  you  would  like  to  read  your  biography,  turn 
ii^   this  chapter,  and  you  will   find  it  already  written. 

I  can  imagine  some  one  saying,  "  I  wonder  if  he  really  pre- 
tends to  say  that  *  there  is  no  difference.'"  The  teetotaller 
says,  "  Am  I  no  better  than  the  drunkard  .?"  Well,  I  want  to 
say  right  here,  that  it  is  a  good  deal  better  to  be  temperate 
than  intemperate  ;  a  good  deal  better  to  be  honest  than  dis- 
honest ;  it  is  better  for  a  man  to  be  upright  in  all  his  transac- 
tions than  to  cheat  right  and  left,  even  in  this  life.  But  when 
it  comes  to  the  great  question  of  salvation,  that  does  not  touch 
the  question  at  all,  because  "  all  have  sinned  and  com^  short 
of  the  glory  of  God."  Men  are  all  bad  by  nature;  the  old 
Adam-stock  is  bad,  and  we  cannot  bring  forth  good  fruit  until 
we  are  grafted  into  the  one  True  Vine.  If  I  have  an  orchard, 
and  two  apple  trees  in  it,  which  both  bear  some  bitter  apples, 
perfectly  worthless,  does  it  make  any  difference  to  me  that 


^  THERE  IS  NO  DIFFEREKCEr  t| 

the  one  tree  has  got  perhaps  five  hundred  apples,  all  bad,  and 
the  other  only  two,  both  bad  ?  There  is  no  difference  ;  only 
one  tree  has  more  fruit  than  the  othR-.  But  it  is  all  bad.  So 
it  is  with  man.  One  thinks  he  has  got  one  or  two  very  little 
sins — God  woft't  notice  that;  why,  that  other  man  has  broken 
every  one  of  the  ten  commandments  !  No  matter,  there  is  no 
difference ;  they  are  both  guilty ;  they  have  both  broken  the 
law.  The  law  demands  complete  and  perfect  fulfilment,  and 
if  you  cannot  do  that,  you  are  lost,  as  far  as  the  law  is  con- 
cerned. "  Whosoever  shall  keep  the  whole  law^  aud yet  offend  in 
one  point,  he  is  guilty  of  all.''  Suppose  you  were  to  hang  up  a 
man  to  the  roof  with  a  chain  of  ten  links  ;  if  one  were  to  break, 
does  it  matter  that  the  other  nine  are  all  sound  and  whole } 
Not  the  least.  One  link  breaks,  and  down  comes  the  man. 
But  is  it  not  rather  hard  that  he  should  fall  when  the  other  nine 
are  perfect,  when  only  one  is  broken  }  Why,  of  course  not ; 
if  one  is  broken,  it  is  just  the  same  to  the  man  as  if  all  had 
been  broken  ;  he  falls.  So  the  man  who  breaks  one  com- 
mandment is  guilty  of  all.  He  is  a  criminal  in  God's  sight. 
Look  at  yonder  prison,  with  its  thousand  victims.  Some  are 
there  for  murder,  some  for  stealing,  some  for  forgery,  some  for 
one  thing  and  some  for  another.  You  may  classify  them,  but 
every  man  is  a  criminal.  They  have  all  broken  the  law,  and 
they  are  all  paying  the  penalty.  So  the  law  has  brought  every 
man  in  a  criminal  in  the  sight  of  God. 

If  a  man  should  advertise  that  he  coiild  take  a  correct  pho- 
tograph of  people's  hearts,  do  you  believe  he  would  find  a  cus- 
tomer }  There  is  not  a  man  among  us  \Thom  you  could  hire  to 
have  his  photograph  taken,  if  you  could  photograph  the  real 
man.  We  go  to  have  our  faces  taken,  and  carefully  arrange 
our  toilet,  and  if  the  artist  flatters  us,  we  say,  "  Oh,  yes,  that's 
a  first-rate  likeness,  as  we  pass  it  around  among  our  friends. 
But  let  the  real  man  be  brought  out,  the  photograph  of  the 
heart,  and  see  if  a  man  will  pass  that  round  among  his  neigh- 
bors. Why,  you  would  not  want  your  own  wife  to  see  it ! 
You  would  be  frightened  even  to  look  at  it  yourself.  Nobody 
2 


i8  "  THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCE:' 

knows  what  is  in  that  heart  but  Christ, 
heart  is  deceitful  above  all  things,  and  desperately  wicked ; 
who  can  know  it  ?  "  We  do  not  know  our  own  hearts  ;  none 
of  us  have  any  idea  how  bad  they  are.  Some  bitter  things  ^le 
written  against  me,  but  I  know  a  good  many  more  things  about 
myself  that  are  bad  than  any  other  man.  There  is  nothing 
good  in  the  old  Adam  nature.  "VVe  have  got  a  heart  in  rebel- 
lion against  God  by  nature,  and  we  do  not  even  love  God  unless 
we  arc  born  of  the  Spirit.  I  can  understand  why  men  do  not 
like  this  third  chapter  of  Romans — it  is  too  strong  for  them. 
It  speaks  the  truth  too  plainly.  But  just  because  we  do  not 
like  it,  we  shall  be  all  the  better  for  having  a  look  it;  very  likely 
we  shall  find  that  it  is  exactly  what  we  want,  after  all.  It's  a 
truth  that  men  do  tiot  at  all  like,  but  I  have  noticed  that  the 
medicine  we  do  not  like  is  the  medicine  that  will  do  us  most 
good.  If  we  do  not  think  we  are  as  bad  as  the  description,  we 
must  just  take  a  closer  look  at  ourselves.  Here  is  a  man  who 
thinks  he  is  not  just  so  bad  as  it  makes  him  out  to  be.  He  is 
sure  he  is  a  little  better  than  his  neighbour  next  door ;  why,  he 
goes  to  church  regularly,  and  his  neighbour  never  goes  to  church 
at  all!  "  Of  course,"  he  congratulates  himself,  "  I'll  certainly 
get  saved  easier."  But  there  is  no  use  trying  to  evade  it.  God 
has  given  us  the  law  to  measure  ourselves  by,  and  by  this  most 
perfect  rule  "we  have  all  sinned  and  come  short,"  and  "there 
is  no  difference." 

Paul  brings  in  the  law  to  show  man  that  he  is  lost  and  ruined. 
God,  being  a  perfect  God,  had  to  give  a  perfect  law,  and  the 
law  was  given  not  to  save  men,  but  to  measure  them  by.  I  want 
you  to  understand  this  clearly,  because  I  believe  hundreds  and 
thousands  stumble  there.  They  try  to  save  themselves  t>y  try- 
ing to  keep  the  law :  but  it  was  never  meant  for  men  to  save 
themselves  by.  The  law  has  never  saved  a  single  man  since 
the  world  began.  Men  have  been  trying  to  keep  it,  but  they 
have  never  succeeded,  and  never  will.  Ask  Paul  what  it  was 
given  for.  Here  is  his  answer,  "  That  every  mouth  might  be 
•topped,  and  the  whole  world  become  guilty  before  God.*      In 


•'  THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCE"  19 

this  third  chapter  of  Romans  the  world  has  been  put  on  its 
trial,  and  found  guilty.  The  verdict  has  been  brought  in  against 
us  all  —  these  ministers  and  elders  and  churoh  members,  just  as 
much  as  the  ])rodigal  and  the  drunkard  —  "  All  have  sinned 
and  come  sliort." 

The  law  stops  every  man's  mouth.  God  will  have  a  man 
humble  himself  down  on  his  face  before  Him,  with  not  a  word 
to  say  for  himself.  Then  God  will  speak  to  him,  when  he  owns 
that  he  is  a  sinner,  and  gets  rid  of  all  his  own  righteousness.  I 
can  always  tell  a  man  who  has  got  near  the  kingdom  of  God  :  his 
mouth  is  stopped.  If  you  will  allow  me  the  expression,  God 
always  shuts  up  a  man's  li])s  before  he  saves  Him.  Job  was  not 
saved  until  he  stopped  talking  about  himself.  Just  see  how 
God  dealt  with  him.  First  of  all,  He  afflicts  him,  and  Job 
begins  to  talk  about  his  own  goodness.  "  I  delivered  the  poor," 
he  says,  "  and  the  fatherless,  and  him  who  had  none  to  help 
him.  I  was  eyes  to  the  blind,  and  feet  was  I  to  the  lame.  I 
was  a  father  to  the  poor!  "  Why,  they  would  have  made  Job 
an  elder,  if  there  had  been  elders  in  those  days !  He  had  been 
a  wonderfully  good  man  !  But  now  God  says,  "  I'll  put  a  few 
questions  to  you.  Gird  up  .now  thy  loins  like  a  man  ;  for  I  will 
demand  of  thee,  and  answer  thou  Me."  And  Job  is  down 
directly;  he  is  ashamed  of  himself;  he  cannot  speak  of  his 
works  any  more.  "  Behold,"  he  cries,  "  I  am  vile  ;  what  shall  I 
answer  Thee  .-^  I  will  lay  mine  hand  upon  my  mouth."  But 
he  is  not  low  enough  yet,  perhaps,  and  God  puts  a  few  more 
questions.  "  Ah  !  "  says  Job,  "  I  never  understood  these  things 
before  —  I  never  saw  it  in  that  light."  He  is  thoroughly  hum- 
bled now;  he  can't  help  confessing  it.  *'  I  have  heard  of  Thee 
by  the  hearing  of  the  ear:  but  now  mine  eye  seeth  Thee. 
Wherefore  I  abhor  myself,  and  repent  in  dust  and  ashes ^  Now 
he  has  found  his  right  position  before  God,  and  now  God  can 
talk  to  him.  And  God  helps  him  and  raises  him  up,  and  gives 
him  the  double  of  all  that  he  had  before.  The  clouds,  and  the 
mist,  and  the  darkness  round  his  path  are  driven  away,  and 


so  "  THERE  IS  NO  DIFEEKENCEr 

light  from  eternity  bursts  into  his  soul  when  he  sees  his  nothing- 
ness in  the  sij^ht  of  a  pure  and  holy  God. 

This,  then,  is  what  God  gives  us  the  law  for  —  to  show  us 
ourselves  in  our  true  colours." 

I  said  to  my  little  family,  one  morning,  a  few  weeks  before 
the  Chicago  fire,  "  I  am  coming  home  this  afternoon  to  give 
you  a  r^e."  My  little  boy  clapped  his  hands.  "  Oh,  papa, 
will  you  Take  me  to  see  the  bears  in  Lincoln  Park?  "  "  Yes." 
Vou  know  boys  are  very  fond  of  seeing  bears.  I  had  not  been 
gone  long  when  ray  little  boy  said,  "  Mamma,  I  wish  you  would 
get  me  ready."  "  Oh,"  she  said,  "  it  will  be  a  long  time  before 
papa  comes."  "  But  I  want  to  get  ready,  mamma."  At  last 
he  was  ready  to  have  the  ride,  face  washed,  and  clothes  all  nice 
and  clean.  "  Now,  you  must  take  good  care  and  not  get  your- 
self dirty  again,"  said  mamma.  Oh,  of  course  he  was  going 
to  take  care;  he  wasn't  going  to  get  dirty.  So  off  he  ran  to 
watch  for  me.  However,  it  was  a  long  time  yet  until  the  after- 
noon, and  after  a  little  he  began  to  play.  When  I  got  home,  1 
found  him  outside,  with  his  face  all  covered  with  dirt.  "  I  can't 
take  you  to  the  Park  that  way,  Willie."  "  Why,  papa  }  you  said 
you  would  take  me."  "Ah,  but  I  can't;  you're  all  over  mud. 
I  couldn't  be  seen  with  such  a  dirty  little  boy."  "Why,  J'se 
clean,  papa  ;  mamma  washed  me."  "Well,  you've  got  dirty 
since."  But  he  began  to  cry,  and  I  could  not  convince  him 
that  he  was  dirty.  "  I'se  clean  ;  mamma  washed  me !  "  he  cried. 
Do  you  think  I  argued  with  him  }  No.  I  just  took  him  up  in 
my  arms,  and  carried  him  into  the  house,  and  showed  him  his 
face  in  the  looking-glass.  He  had  not  a  word  to  say.  He 
could  not  take  my  word  for  it ;  but  one  look  at  the  glass  was 
enough  ;  he  saw  it  for  himself.  He  didn't  say  he  wasn't  dirty 
after  that  ! 

Now  the  looking-glass  showed  him  that  his  face  was  dirty  — 
but  I  did  not  take  the  looking-glass  to  wash  it;  of  course  not. 
Yet  that  is  just  what  thousands  of  people  do.  The  law  is  the 
looking-glass  to  see  ourselves  in,  to  show  us  how  vile  and  worth- 
less we  are  in  the  sight  of  God  ;  but  they  take  the  law,  and  try 


"  THERE  IS  NO  DlFFERENCEr  ai 

to  wash  themselves  with  it !  Man  has  been  irying  that  for  six 
thousand  years,  and  has  miserably  failed.  By  tJu  deeds  of  tht 
law  there  shall  no  flesh  be  justified  in  his  sight.  Only  one  Man 
ever  lived  on  the  earth  who  could  say  He  had  kept  the  law, 
and  that  was  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  If  he  had  committed  one 
sin,  and  came  short  in  the  smallest  degree,  his  offering  Himself 
for  us  would  have  been  useless.  But  men  have  tried  to  do  what 
He  did,  and  have  failed,  instead  of  sheltering  under  his  right- 
eousness, they  have  offered  (iod  their  own.  And  God  knew 
what  a  miserable  failure  it  would  be.  "  There  is  none  that 
doeth  righteous,  no,  not  one." 

I  don't  care  where  you  put  man,  everywhere  he  has  been 
tried  he  has  proved  a  total  failure.  He  was  put  in  Eden  on 
trial ;  and  some  men  sa^'  they  wish  they  had  Adam's  chance. 
If  you  had,  you  would  go  down  as  quickly  as  he  did.  You  put 
five  hundred  children  into  this  hall,  and  give  them  ten  thousand 
toys ;  tell  them  they  can  run  all  over  the  hall,  and  they  can  have 
anything  they  want  except  one  thing,  placed,  let  us  say,  in  one 
of  the  corners  of  Mr.  Sankey's  organ.  You  go  out  for  a  little 
while,  and  do  you  think  that  is  not  the  very  first  place  they  will  go 
to.-*  Why,  nothing  else  in  the  room  would  have  any  attraction 
for  them  but  just  the  thing  they  were  told  not  to  touch.  And 
so  let  us  not  think  Adam  was  any  worse  than  ourselves.  Adam 
was  put  on  trial,  and  Satan  walks  into  Eden.  I  do  not  know 
how  long  he  was  there,  but  I  should  think  he  had  not  been 
there  twenty  minutes  before  he  stripped  Adam  of  everything 
he  had.  There  he  is,  fresh  from  the  hands  of  his  Creator  : 
Satan  comes  upon  the  scene,  and  presents  a  temptation,  and 
down  he  goes.     He  was  a  failure. 

Then  God  took  man  into  covenant  with  Him.  He  said  to 
Abraham,  "  Look  yonder  at  the  stars  in  the  heavens  and  the 
sands  on  the  seashore  ;  I  will  make  your  seed  like  that.  I  will 
bless  thee  and  multiply  thee  upon  the  earth."  But  what  a 
stupendous  failure  man  was  under  the  covenant.  Go  back  and 
read  about  it. 

They  are  brought  out  of  Egypt,  see  many  signs  and  wonders 


2  2  ''  THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCE:' 

and  stand  at  last  at  the  foot  of  Mount  Sinai.  Then  God's  holy 
law  is  given  them.  Did  they  not  promise  to  keep  it  ?  "  O 
yes,"  they  cry,  "  we'll  keep  the  law,  certainly  !  "  To  hear  them 
talk  you  might  think  it  was  going  to  be  all  right  now.  But  just 
wait  till  Joshua  and  Moses  have  turned  their  backs  !  No  sooner 
have  their  leaders  gone  up  the  mountain  to  have  an  interview 
with  God  than  they  begin  saying,  "  Wonder  what's  become  ol 
this  man  Moses  }  we  don't  know  where  he's  got  to.  Come, 
let  us  make  unto  us  another  God.  Aaron  !  make  us  a  golden 
calf;  here  are  the  golden  ornaments  we  got  from  the  Egyptians, 
come  and  make  us  another  God."  So  when  it  is  made,  the 
peoj)le  raise  a  great  shout,  and  fall  down  and  worship  it. 
"  Hark !  listen  ;  what  shout  is  that  I  hear  }  "  says  Moses,  as  he 
comes  down  the  mountain  side.  "  Alas,"  says  Joshua,  '*  there's 
war  in  the  camp,  it  is  the  shout  of  the  victor."  "Ah,  no,"  says 
Moses,  "  it  isn't  the  shout  of  victory  or  of  war,  Joshua,  it  is  the 
cry  of  the  idolaters.  They  have  forgotten  the  God  who  deliv- 
ered them  from  the  Egyptians,  who  led  them  through  the  Red 
Sea,  who  fed  them  with  bread  from  heaven  —  angel's  food. 
They  have  forgotten  their  promises  to  keep  the  commandments. 
Already  the  first  two  of  them  are  broken,  'no  other  gods,'  *  no 
graven  image.'  They've  made  them  another  god  —  a  golden 
god ! "     And   that's  what  men  have  been    doing   ever   since. 

There  are  more  men  in  the  land  worshipping  the  golden 
calf  than  the  God  of  heaven.  Look  around  you.  They  bring 
before  it  health,  and  happiness,  and  peace.  "  Give  me  thirty 
pieces  of  silver,  and  I  will  sell  you  Christ,"  is  the  world's  cry 
to-day.  "Give  me  fashion,  and  I  will  sell  you  Christ!"  "I 
will  sacrifice  my  wife,  my  children,  my  life,  my  all,  for  a  little 
drink.  1  will  sell  my  soul  for  drink  !"  It  is  easy  to  blame  these 
men  for  worshipping  the  golden  calf.  But  what  are  we  doing 
ourselves  ?  Ah,  man  was  a  failure  then,  and  he  has  been  a 
failure  ever  since. 

Then  God  put  him  under  the  judges,  and  wonderful  judges 
they  were  ;  but  once  more,  what  a  failure  he  was  !  After  that 
came  the  prophets,  and   what  a   failure  he  was   under  them  ' 


"  THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCES  23 

Then  came  the  Son  from  heaven  himself,  right  out  of  the 
bosom  of  the  Father.  He  left  the  throne  and  came  down  here, 
to  teach  us  how  to  live.  We  took  Him  and  murdered  Him  on 
Calvary  !     Man  was  2i  failure  in  Christ's  time. 

And  now  we  are  living  under  the  dispensation  of  grace  —  a 
wonderful  dispensation.  God  is  showering  down  blessings 
from  above.  But  what  is  man  under  grace  !  A  stupendous 
failure.  Look  at  that  man  reeling  on  his  way  to  a  drunkard's 
grave,  and  his  soul  to  a  drunkard's  hell.  Look  at  the  wretched 
harlots  on  your  streets.  Look  at  the  profligacy,  and  the 
pauperism  and  the  loathsome  sickness.  Look  at  the  vice  and 
crime  that  festers  everywhere,  and  tell  me  is  it  not  true  that 
man  is  a  failure  under  grace  ? 

Yes,  man  is  a  failure.  I  can  see  right  down  the  other  side 
of  the  millennium  ;  Christ  has  swayed  his  sceptre  over  the 
earth  for  a  thousand  years ;  but  man  is  a  failure  still.  For 
"  when  the  thousand  years  are  expired,  Satan  shall  be  loosed 
out  of  his  prison,  and  shall  go  out  to  deceive  the  nations  which 
are  in  the  four  quarters  of  the  earth,  Gog  and  Magog,  to  gather 

them  together  to  battle and  they  compassed  the  camp 

of  the  saints  about,  and  the  beloved  city;  and  the  fire  came 
down  from  God  out  of  heaven,  and  devoured  them."  What 
man  wants  is  another  nature  ;  he  must  be  born  again.  What  a 
foolish  saying,  "  Experience  teaches."  Man  has  been  a  long 
time  at  that  school,  and  has  never  learned  his  lesson  yet  —  his 
own  weakness  and  inability.  He  still  thinks  great  things  of  his 
own  strength.  "  I  am  going  to  stand  after  this,"  he  says,  "  I 
have  hit  upon  the  right  plan  this  time.  I  am  able  to  keep  the 
law  now."  But  the  first  temptation  comes,  and  he  is  down. 
Man  will  not  believe  in  God's  strength.  Man  will  not  acknowl- 
edge himself  a  failure,  and  surrender  to  Christ  to  save  him 
from  his  sins. 

But  is  it  not  better  to  find  out  in  this  world  that  we  are  a 
failure,  and  to  go  to  Christ  for  deliverance,  than  to  sleep  on 
and  go  down  to  hell  without  knowing  we  are  sinners } 

I  know  this  doctrine  that  we  have  all  failed,  that  we  have 


t4  **  THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCE: 

all  sinned,  and  come  short,  is  exceedingly  objectionable  to  the 
natural  man.  If  I  had  tried  to  find  out  the  most  disagreeable 
verse  in  the  whole  Bible,  perhaps  I  could  not  have  fastened 
upon  one  more  universally  disliked  than  "  There  is  no  differenced 

I  can  imagine  —  and  I  think  I  have  a  right  to  imagine  it  — 
Noah,  leaving  his  ark  and  going  off  preaching  for  once  in  a 
while.  As  the  passers-by  stop  to  listen,  there  is  no  sound  of 
the  hammer  or  the  plane.  Noah  has  stopped  work.  He  has 
gone  off  on  a  preaching  tour,  to  warn  his  countrymen.  Per- 
haps he  was  telling  them  that  there  was  a  great  deluge  coming 
to  sweep  away  all  the  workers  of  iniquity  ;  perhaps  he  was 
warning  them  that  every  man  who  was  not  in  the  ark  must 
perish  ;  that  there  would  be  no  difference.  I  can  imagine  one 
man  saying,  "  You  had  better  go  back  and  finish  your  work. 
Noah,  rather  than  come  here  preaching.  You  don't  think  we  are 
going  to  believe  in  such  nonsense  as  that.  You  tell  us  that  all 
are  going  to  perish  alike  !  Do  you  really  expect  us  to  believe  that 
the  kings  and  governors,  the  sheriffs  and  the  princes,  the  rulers, 
the  beggars  and  thieves  and  harlots,  are  all  going  to  be  alike 
lost  ?"  "  Yes,"  says  Noah  ;  "  the  deluge  that  is  coming  by  and  by 
will  take  you  all  away —  every  man  that  is  not  in  the  ark  must  die. 
There  will  be  no  difference."  Doubtless  they. thought  Noah 
had  gone  raving  mad.  But  did  not  the  flood  come  and  take 
them  all  away  }  Princes  and  paupers,  and  knaves  and  kings  — 
was  there  any  difference  ?     No  difference. 

When  the  destroying  angel  was  about  to  pass  through  Egypt, 
no  doubt  the  haughty  Egyptian  laughed  at  the  poor  Israelite 
putting  the  blood  on  his  door-post  and  lintel.  "  What  a  foolish 
notion,"  he  would  say  derisively  ;  "  the  very  idea  of  sprinkling 
blood  on  a  door-post !  If  there  were  anything  coming,  that 
would  never  keep  it  away  I  don't  believe  there  is  any  death 
coming  at  all ;  and  if  it  did,  it  might  touch  these  poor  people, 
but  it  would  certainly  never  come  near  us."  But  when  the 
night  came,  there  was  no  difference.  The  king  in  his  palace, 
the  captive  in  his  prison,  the  beggar  by  the  wayside  —  they 
were  all  alike.     Into  every  house  the  king  of  terrors  had  come, 


''THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCEr  25 

and  there  was  universal  mourning  in  the  land.  In  the  home 
of  the  poor  and  the  lowly,  in  the  home  of  the  prince  and  the 
noble,  in  the  home  of  the  governor  and  ruler,  the  eldest  son 
lay  dead.  Only  the  poor  Israelite  escaped  who  had  the  blood 
on  the  door-post  and  lintel.  And  when  God  comes  to  us  in 
judgment,  if  we  are  not  in  Christ,  all  will  be  alike.  Learned  or 
unlearned,  high  or  low,  priest  or  scribe  —  there  will  be  no 
difference. 

Once  more,  I  can  imagine  Abraham  going  down  from  the 
hills  to  Sodom.  He  stands  up,  let  us  say,  at  the  corners  of  the 
streets,  before  Sodom  was  destroyed  —  "  Ye  men  of  Sodom,  I 
have  a  message  from  my  God  to  you."  The  people  stand  and 
look  at  the  old  man  —  you  can  see  his  v/hite  locks  as  the  wind 
sweeps  through  them  —  "I  have  a  warning  for  you,"  he  cries. 
*  God  is  going  to  destroy  the  five  cities  of  the  plain,  and  every 
man  who  does  not  escape  to  yonder  mountain  must  perish. 
When  he  comes  to  deal  in  judgment  with  you  there  will  be  no 
difference ;  every  man  must  die.  The  Lord  Mayor,  the  princes, 
the  chief  men,  the  mighty  men,  the  judges,  the  treasurers  —  all 
must  perish.  The  thief  and  the  vagabond  and  the  drunkard  — 
yes,  all  must  perish  alike.  There  can  be  'no  difference.'  "  But 
these  Sodomites  answer,  "  You  had  better  go  back  to  your  tent 
on  the  hills,  Abraham.  We  don't  believe  a  word  of  it.  Sodom 
was  never  so  prosperous ;  business  was  never  so  flourishing  as 
now.  The  sun  never  shone  any  brighter  than  it  does  to-day. 
The  lambs  are  skipping  on  the  hills,  and  everything  moving  on 
as  it  has  done  for  centuries.  Don't  preach  that  stuff  to  us  ;  we 
don't  believe  it."  A  few  hours  pass,  and  Sodom  is  in  ashes! 
Did  God  make  any  difference  among  those  who  would  not 
believe  ?  No,  God  never  utters  any  opinion ;  what  He  says  is 
there  is  no  difference."  I  read  of  a  deluge  of  fire  that  is  going 
to  roll  over  this  earth,  and  when  God  comes  to  deal  in  jiulg- 
ment,  there  will  be  no  difference,  and  every  man  who  is  out  of 
Christ  must  perish. 


a6  ''THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCEr 

It  was  my  sad  lot  to  be  in  the  Chicago  fire.  As  the  flames 
rolled  down  our  streets,  destroying  everything  in  their  onward 
march,  I  saw  the  great  and  the  honourable,  the  learned  and  the 
wise,  fleeing  before  the  fire  with  the  beggar,  and  the  thief,  and 
the  harlot;  All  were  alike.  As  the  flames  swept  through  the 
city  it  was  like  the  judgment  day.  The  mayor,  nor  the  mighty 
men,  nor  wise  men  could  stop  these  flames.  They  were  all  on 
a  level  then,  and  many  who  were  worth  hundreds  of  thousands* 
were  left  paupers  that  night.  When  the  day  of  judgment  comes, 
there  will  be  no  difference.  When  the  deluge  came  there  was 
no  difference  ;  Noah's  ark  was  worth  more  than  all  the  world. 
The  day  before,  it  was  the  world's  laughing-stock,  and  if  it  had 
been  put  up  to  auction,  you  could  not  have  got  anybody  to  buy 
it  except  for  firewood.  But  the  deluge  came,  and  then  it  was 
worth  more  than  all  the  world  together.  And  when  the -day  of 
judgment  comes,  Christ  will  be  worth  more  than  all  this  world, 
more  than  ten  thousand  worlds.  And  if  it  was  a  terrible  thing 
in  t)ie  days  of  Noah  to  die  outside  the  ark,  it  will  be  far  more 
terrible  for  us  to  go  down  in  our  sins  to  a  Christless  grave. 

Now  I  hope  that  you  have  seen  what  I  have  been  trying  to 
prove  —  that  we  are  all  sinners  alike.  If  I  have  failed  to  prove 
that,  then  the  meeting  to-night  has  been  a  failure.  I  should 
like  to  use  another  illustration  or  two.  I  should  like  to  make 
this  truth  so  plain  that  a  child  might  know  it.  In  the  olden 
times  in  England,  we  are  told,  they  used  to  have  a  game  of 
firing  arrows  through  a  ring  on  the  top  of  a  pole.  The  man 
that  failed  to  get  all  his  arrows  through  the  ring  was  called  a 
"sinner."  Now  I  should  like  for  a  moment  to  take  up  that 
illustration.  Suppose  our  pole  to  be  up  in  the  gallery,  and  on 
the  top  of  it  the  ring.  I  have  got  ten  arrows,  let  us  say,  and 
Mr.  Sankey  has  got  another  ten.  I  take  up  the  first  arrow, 
^nd  take  a  good  aim.  Alas  I  I  miss  the  mark.  Therefore  I  am 
a  "  sinner."  "  But,"  I  say,  "  I  will  do  the  best  I  can  with  th 
other  nine;  I  have  only  missed  with  one."  Like  some  mcf 
who  try  to  keep  all  the  commandments  but  one !  I  fire  agxir 
and  miss  the  mark  a  second  time.     "Ah,  but,"  I  say,  "  I  hjiT< 


''THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCE:'  a; 

got  eight  arrows  still,"  and  away  goes  an  other  arrow —  migs  . 
I  fire  all  the  ten  arrows  and  do  not  get  one  through  the  ring. 
Well,  I  was  a  "  sinner  "  after  the  first  miss,  and  I  can  only  be 
a  "  sinner  "  after  the  tenth.  Now  Mr.  Sankey  comes  with  his 
ten  arrows.  He  fires  and  gets  his  first  arrow  through.  "  Do 
you  see  that  .'*  "  he  says.  "Well,"  I  reply,  "  go  on  ;  don't  boast 
until  you  get  them  all  through."  He  takes  the  second  arrow 
and  gets  that  through.  '"  Ha  !  do  you  see  that  ?  "  "  Don't 
boast,"  I  repeat,  "until  all  ten  are  through  jr"  if  a  man  has  not 
broken  the  law  at  all  then  he  has  got  something  to  boast  of ! 
Away  goes  the  third,  and  it  goes  through.  Then  another  and 
another  all  right,  and  another  until  nine  are  through.  "  Now," 
he  says,  "one  more  arrow,  and  I  am  not  a  sinner."  He  takes 
up  the  last  arrow,  and  his  hand  trembles  a  little;  ht  Just  misses 
the  mark.  And  he  is  a  '^sinner  "  as  well  as  I  a?n.  My  friend, 
have  you  never  missed  the  mark  ?  Have  you  not  come  short } 
I  should  like  to  see  the  man  who  never  missed  the  mark.  He 
nrver  lived. 

Let  me  give  you  just  one  more  illustration.  When  Chicago 
was  a  small  town,  it  was  incorporated  and  made  a  city.  When 
we  got  our  charter  for  the  city,  there  was  one  clause  in  the  con- 
stitution that  allowed  the  Mayor  to  appoint  all  the  police.  It 
worked  very  well  when  it  was  a  small  city;  but  when  it  had 
three  or  four  hundred  thousand  inhabitants,  it  put  too  much 
power  in  the  hands  of  one  man.  So  our  leading  citizens  got  a 
new  bill  passed  that  took  the  power  out  of  the  hands  of  the 
Mayor,  and  put  it  into  the  hands  of  Commissioners  appointed 
by  Government.  There  was  one  clause  in  the  new  law  that  no 
man  should  be  a  policeman  who  was  not  a  certain  height  — 
5  feet  6  inches,  let  us  say.  When  the  Commissioners  got  into 
power,  they  advertised  for  men  as  candidates,  and  in  the  adver- 
tisement they  stated  that  lio  man  need  apply  who  cuuld  not 
bring  good  credentials  to  recommend  Him.  I  remember  going 
past  the  office  one  day,  and  there  was  a  crowd  of  them  waiting 
to  get  in.  They  quite  blocked  up  the  side  of  the  street;  and 
they  were  comparing  notes  as  to  their  chances  of  success.     One 


28  "  THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCE:' 

says  to  another,  "  I  have  got  a  good  letter  of  recommendation 
from  the  Mayor,  and  one  from  the  supreme  judge."  Another 
says,  "  And  I  have  got  a  good  letter  from  Senator  So-and-so. 
I'm  sure  to  get  in."  The  two  men  come  on  together,  and  lay 
their  letters  down  on  the  Commissioners'  desk.  "  Well,"  say 
the  officials,  "you  have  certainly  a  good  many  letters,  but  we 
won't  read  them  till  we  measure  you."  Ah  !  they  forgot  all 
about  that.  So  the  first  man  is  measured,  and  he  is  only  five 
feet.  "  No  chance  for  you,  sir  ;  the  law  says  the  men  must  be 
5  feet  6  inches,  and  you  don't  come  up  to  the  standard."  The 
other  says,  "  Well,  my  chance  is  a  good  deal  better  than  his. 
I'm  a  good  bit  taller  than  he  is  " — he  begins  to  measure  him- 
self by  the  other  man.  That  is  what  people  are  always  doing, 
measuring  themselves  by  others.  Measure  yourselves  by  the 
law  of  God,  or  by  the  Son  of  God  Himself;  and  if  you  do  that, 
you  will  find  you  have  come  short.  He  goes  up  to  the  officers, 
and  they  measure  him ;  he  is  5  feet  5  inches  and  nine-tenths  of 
an  inch.  "  No  good,"  they  tell  him;  "you're  not  up  to  the 
standard."  "But  I'm  only  one-tenth  of  an  inch  short,"  he 
remonstrates.  "  It's  no  matter,"  they  say  ;  "  there's  no  differ- 
ence." He  goes  with  the  man  who  was  five  feet.  One  comes 
short  six  inches,  and  the  other  only  one-tenth  of  an  inch,  but 
the  law  cannot  be  changed.  And  the  law  of  God  is  that  no 
man  shall  go  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  with  one  sin  on  him. 
He  that  has  broken  the  least  law  is  guilty  of  all. 

"  Then,  is  there  any  hope  for  me  V  you  say.  "  What  star  is 
there  to  relieve  the  midnight  darkness  and  gloom }  What  is  to 
become  of  me }  If  all  this  is  true,  I  am  a  poor  lost  soul.  I 
have  committed  sin  from  my  earliest  childhood."  Thank  God, 
my  friends,  this  is  just  where  the  gospel  comes  in.  "  Pie  was 
made  sin  for  us  who  knew  no  sin."  "  He  was  wounded  for  our 
transgressions.  He  was  bruised  for  ou»  iniquities;  the  chastise- 
ment of  our  peace  was  upon  Him,  and  with  his  stripes  we  are 
healed."  "We  all  like  sheep  have  gone  astray,  we  have  turned 
every  one  to  his  own  way,  and  the  Lord  hath  laid  upon  Him 
the  iniquity  of  us  all." 


"  THERE  rS  NO  DIFFERENCEr  39 

You  ask  me  what  my  hope  is;  it  is,  that  Christ  died  for  my 
sins,  in  my  stead,  in  my  place,  and  therefore  1  can  enter  into 
life  eternal.  You  ask  Paul  what  his  hope  was.  "  Christ  died 
for  our  sins  according  to  the  Scripture."  This  is  the  hope  in 
which  died  all  the  glorious  martyrs  of  old,  in  which  all  who 
have*  entered  heaven's  gate  have  found  their  only  comfort. 
Take  that  doctrine  of  substitution  out  of  the  Bible,  and  my 
hope  is  lost.  With  the  law,  without  Christ,  we  are  all  undone. 
The  law  we  have  broken,  and  it  can  only  hang  over  our  head  the 
sharp  sword  of  justice.  Even  if  we  could  keep  it  from  this 
moment,  there  remains  the  unforgiven  past.  "Without  shed- 
ding of  blood  there  is  no  remission." 

He  only  is  safe  for  eternity  who  is  sheltered  behind  the  fin- 
ished work  of  Christ.  What  the  law  cannot  do  for  us,  He  can 
do.  He  obeyed  it  to  the  very  letter,  and  under  His  obedience 
we  can  take  our  stand.  For  us  He  has  suffered  all  its  penalties, 
and  paid  all  that  the  law  demands.  "  His  own  self  bare  our 
sins  in  His  own  body  on  the  tree."  He  saw  the  awful  end  from 
the  beginning;  He  knew  what  death,  what  ruin,  what  misery 
lay  before  us  if  we  were  left  to  ourselves.  And  He  came  from 
heaven  to  teach  us  the  new  and  living  way  by  which  "  all  that 
believe  are  justified  from  all  things  from  which  they  could  not 
be  justified  by  the  law  of  Moses." 

There  is  a  well-known  story  told  of  Napoleon  the  First's 
time.  In  one  of  the  conscriptions,  during  one  of  his  many  wars, 
a  man  was  balloted  as  a  conscript  who  did  not  want  to  go,  but 
he  had  a  friend  who  ofi"ered  to  go  in  his  place.  His  friend 
joined  the  regiment  in  his  name,  and  was  sent  off  to  the  war. 
By  and  by  a  battle  came  on,  in  which  he  was  killed,  and  they 
buried  him  on  the  battle-field.  Some  time  after  the  Emperor 
wanted  more  men,  and  by  some  mistake  the  first  man  was  bal- 
loted the  second  time.  They  went  to  take  him,  but  he  remon- 
strated. "You  cannot  take  me."  "Why  not!"  "I  am  dead," 
was  the  reply.  "You  are  not  dead;  you  are  alive  and  well." 
"  But  I  am  dead,"  he  said.  "  Why,  man,  you  must  be  mad. 
Where  did  you  die  ?  "     '*At   such  a  battle,  and  you  left  me 


30  ''THERE  IS  NO  DIFFERENCE: 

buried  on  such  a  battle-field."  "You  talk  like  a  mad-man/' 
they  cried  ;  but  the  man  stuck  to  his  point  that  he  had  been 
dead  and  buried  some  months.  "You  look  up  your  books,"  he 
said,  "  and  see  if  it  is  not  so."  They  looked,  and  found  that  he 
was  right.  They  found  the  man's  name  entered  as  drafted,  sent 
to  the  war,  and  marked  off  as  killed.  "  Look  here,"  they  said, 
"  you  didn't  die;  you  must  have  got  some  one  to  go  for  you; 
It  must  have  been  your  substitutey  "I  know  that,"  he  said ; 
"  he  died  in  my  stead.  You  cannot  touch  me  ;  I  died  in  that 
man,  and  I  go  free.  The  law  has  no  claim  against  me."  They 
would  not  recognize  the  doctrine  of  substitution,  and  the  case 
was  carried  to  the  Emperor.  But  he  said  that  the  man  was 
right,  that  he  was  dead  and  buried  in  the  eyes  of  the  law,  and 
that  France  had  no  claim  against  him. 

The  story  may  be  true,  or  it  may  not,  but  one  thing  I  know 
to  be  true,  that  the  Emperor  of  heaven  recognizes  the  doctrine 
of  substitution,  Christ  died  for  me;  that  is  my  hope  of  eternal 
life.  "There  is  no  condemnation  to  them  which  are  in  Christ 
Jesus."  If  you  ask  me  what  you  must  do  to  share  this  bless- 
ing, I  answer,  go  and  deal  personally  with  Christ  about  it. 
i^ike  the  sinner's  place  at  the  foot  of  the  cross.  Strip  yourself 
of  all  your  own  righteousness,  and  put  on  Christ's.  Wrap  your- 
self up  in  his  perfect  robe,  and  receive  Him  by  simple  trust  as 
your  own  Saviour.  Thus  you  inherit  the  priceless  treasures 
that  Christ  hath  purchased  with  his  blood.  '^As  many  as  received 
I  limy  to  ihetn  gave  He  pcnver  to  become  the  sorts  of  God.''  Yes, 
sons  of  God ;  power  to  overcome  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the 
devil ;  power  to  crucify  every  besetting  sin,  passion,  lust ;  power 
to  shout  in  triumph  over  every  trouble  and  temptation  of  your 
life,  "  I  can  do  all  things  through  Christ  which  strengtheneth 
me." 

I  have  been  trying  to  tell  you  the  old,  old  tale  that  men  are 
sinners.  I  may  be  speaking  to  some  one,  perhaps,  who  thinks 
it  a  waste  of  time.  "God  knows  I'm  a  sinner,"  he  cries;  "  you 
don't  need  to  prove  it.  Since  I  could  speak,  I've  done  noth- 
ing but  break  every  law  of  earth  and  heaven."    Well,  my  friend, 


''THERE  IS  NO  DIFEERENCEr  31 

I  have  good  news  for  you.  It  is  just  as  easy  for  God  to  save 
you,  who  have  Uroken  the  whole  decalogue,  as  the  man  who  has 
only  broken  one  of  the  commandments.  Both  are  dead  —  dead 
In  sins.  It  is  no  matter  how  dead  you  are,  or  how  long  you 
have  been  dead;  Christ  can  bring  you  to  life  just  the  same. 
There  is  no  difference.  When  Christ  met  that  poor  widow 
coming  out  of  Nain,  following  the  body  of  her  darling  boy  to 
the  grave  —  he  was  just  newly  dead — His  loving  heart  could 
not  pass  her ;  He  stopped  the  funeral,  and  bade  the  dead  arise. 
He  was  obeyed  at  once,  and  the  mother  was  clasped  once  more 
in  the  living  embrace  of  her  son.  And  when  Jesus  stood  by 
the  grave  of  Lazarus,  who  had  been  dead  four  days^  was  it  not 
just  as  easy  for  Him  to  say,  "  Lazarus,  come  forth  }  "  Was  it 
not  as  easy  for  Him,  to  bring  Lazarus  from  his  tomb,  who  had 
beer  dead  four  days,  as  the  son  of  the  widow,  who  had  been 
dead  but  one.**  Yes,  it  was  just  as  easy;  there  was  no  differ- 
ence. They  were  both  alike  dead,  and  Christ  saved  the  one 
just  as  easily,  and  as  willingly,  and  as  lovingly  as  the  other. 
And  therefore,  my  friend,  you  need  not  complain  that  Christ 
cannot  save  you.  Why,  Christ  died  for  the  ungodly.  And  if  you 
turn  to  Him  at  this  moment  with  an  honest  heart,  and  rece'ive 
Him  simply  as  your  Saviour  and  your  God,  I  have  the  authority 
of  his  Word  for  telling  you  that  He  will  in  no  wise  cast  out. 

And  you  who  have  never  felt  the  burden  of  your  sin  —  you 
who  think  there  is  a  great  deal  of  difference  —  you  who  thank 
God  that  you  are  not  as  other  men  —  beware.  God  has  nothing 
to  say  to  the  self-righteous.  And  unless  you  humble  yourself 
before  Him  in  the  dust,  and  confess  before  Him  your  iniquities 
and  sins,  the  gate  of  heaven,  which  is  open  only  for  sinners., 
saved  by  grace.,  must  be  shut  against  you  for  ever. 


GOOD   NEWS. 


'The  Gospel."—  i  Cor.  xv.  i. 

I  Du  not  think  there  is  a  word  in  the  English  language  so  littic 
understood  as  the  word  "  gospel."  We  hear  it  every  day,  ano 
we  have  heard  it  from  our  earliest  childhood,  yet  there  are 
many  people,  and  even  many  Christians,  who  do  not  really 
know  what  it  means.  I  believe  I  was  a  child  of  God  a  long 
time  before  I  really  knew.  The  word  "  gospel  "  means  "  God  s- 
spell,"  or  good  spell,  or  in  other  words,  "  good  news."  The 
gospel  is  good  tidings  of  great  joy.  No  better  news  ever  came 
nut  of  heaven  than  the  gospel.  No  better  news  ever  fell  upon 
the  ears  of  the  family  of  man  than  the  gospel.  When  the  angels 
«  ame  down  to  proclaim  the  tidings,  what  did  they  say  to  those 
shepherds  on  the  plains  of  Bethlehem  ?  "  Behold  I  bring  yoi: 
v<7^  tidings  .^  "  No!  "  Behold,  I  bring  you  ^^-^  news  .>  "  No' 
"  Behold,  I  bring  you  ^is^oot/  tidings  oi ^r^af  joy,  which  shall  be  to 
nil  people  ;  for  unto  you  is  bom  this  day,  in  the  city  of  David, 
a  Saviour."  If  those  shepherds  had  been  like  a  good  manv 
|>eople  at  the  present  time,  they  would  have  said,  "  We  do  not 
believe  it  is  good  news.  It  is  all  excitement.  These  angels 
want  to  get  up  a  revival.  These  angels  are  trying  to  excite  us 
Don't  you  believe  them."  That  is  what  Satan  is  saying  now 
"  Don't  you  believe  the  gospel  is  good  news ;  it  will  only  make 
you  miserable."  He  knows  the  moment  a  man  believes  good 
news,  he  just  receives  it.     And  no  one  who  is  under  the  power 


GOOD  NEWS.  15 

of  the  devil  really  believes  that  the  gospel  is  good  news.  But 
these  shepherds  believed  the  message  that  the  angels  brought, 
and  their  hearts  were  filled  with  joy.  If  a  boy  came  with  a 
despatch  to  some  one  here,  could  you  not  tell  by  the  receiver's 
looks  what  kind  of  a  message  it  was.-*  If  it  brought  good 
news  you  would  see  it  in  his  face  in  a  moment.  If  it  told  him 
that  his  boy,  away  in  some  foreign  land,  a  prodigal  son,  had 
come  to  himself,  like  the  one  in  the  15th  of  Luke,  do  you  not 
think  that  father's  face  would  light  up  with  joy?  And  if  his 
wife  were  here,  he  would  not  wait  till  they  got  home,  or  till 
she  asked  for  it,  he  would  pass  it  over  to  her,  and  her  face 
would  brighten  too,  as  she  shared  his  joy.  But  the  tidings 
that  the  gospel  brings  are  more  glorious  than  that.  We  are 
dead  in  trespasses  and  sins,  and*  the  gospel  offers  life.  We  are 
enemies  to  God,  and  the  gospel  offers  reconciliation.  The 
world  is  in  darkness,  and  the  gospel  offers  light.  Because  man 
will  not  believe  the  gospel  that  Christ  is  the  light  of  the  world, 
the  world  is  dark  to-day.  But  the  moment  a  man  believes, 
the  light  from  Calvary  crosses  his  path  and  he  walks  in  an 
unclouded  sun. 

I  want  to  tell  you  why  I  like  the  gospel.  It  is  because  it  has 
been  the  very  best  news  I  have  ever  heard.  That  is  just  why 
I  like  to  preach  it,  because  it  has  done  me  so  much  good.  No 
man  can  ever  tell  what  it  has  done  for  him,  but  I  think  I  can 
tell  what  it  has  undone.  It  has  taken  out  of  my  path  four  of 
the  bitterest  enemies  I  ever  had. 

There  is  that  terrible  enemy  mentioned  in  i  Cor.  xv.,  the  last 
enemy.  Death.  The  gospel  has  taken  it  out  of  the  way.  My 
mind  very  often  rolls  back  twenty  years  ago,  before  I  was  con- 
verted, and  I  think  how  dark  it  used  to  seem,  as  I  thought  of 
the  future.  I  well  remember  how  I  used  to  look  on  death  as  a 
terrible  monster,  how  he  used  to  throw  his  dark  shadow  across 
my  path  ;  how  I  trembled  as  I  thought  of  the  terrible  hour 
when  he  should  come  for  me ;  how  I  thought  I  should  like  to 
die  of  some  lingering  disease,  such   as  consumption,  so  that  I 

a 


54  GOOD  NEWS. 

might  know  when  he  was  coming,  li  was  the  custom  in  ou- 
village  to  toll  from  the  old  church  bell  the  age  of  any  one  ryhn 
died.  Death  never  entered  that  village  and  tore  away  one  o^ 
the  inhabitants  but  I  counted  the  tolling  of  the  bell.  Some 
times  it  was  seventy,  sometimes  eighty ;  sometimes  it  would  br 
away  down  among  the  teens ;  sometimes  it  would  toll  out  the 
death  of  some  one  of  my  own  age.  It  made  a  solemn  impres 
sion  upon  me.  I  felt  a  coward  then,  I  thought  of  the  cole 
hand  of  death  feeling  for  the  cords  of  life.  I  thought  of  being 
launched  forth  to  spend  my  eternity  in  an  unknown  land. 

As  I  looked  into  the  grave,  and  saw  the  sexton  throw  the 
earth  on  the  cofhn-lid,  "  Earth  to  earth  ;  ashes  to  ashes ;  dust 
to  dust,"  it  seemed  like  the  death  knell  to  my  soul.  But  that 
is  all  changed  now.  The  grave  has  lost  its  terror.  As  I  go  on 
towards  heaven  I  can  shout,  "  O  death  !  where  is  thy  sting  V 
and  I  hear  the  answer  rolling  down  from  Calvary  —  "  buried 
in  the  bosom  of  the  Son  of  God."  He  took  the  sting  right 
out  of  death  for  me,  and  received  it  into  his  own  bosom. 
Take  a  hornet  and  pluck  the  sting  out ;  you  are  not  afraid  of 
it  after  that  any  more  than  of  a  fly.  So  death  has  lost  its 
sting.  That  last  enemy  has  been  overcome,  and  I  can  look  on 
death  as  a  crushed  victim.  All  that  death  can  get  now  is  this 
old  Adam,  and  I  do  not  care  how  quickly  I  get  rid  of  it.  I 
shall  get  a  glorified  body,  a  resurrection  body,  a  body  much 
better  than  this.  Suppose  death  should  come  stealing  up  into 
this  pulpit,  and  lay  his  icy  hand  upon  my  heart,  and  it  should 
cease  to  throb,  I  should  rise  to  the  better  world  to  be  present 
with  the  King.  The  gospel  has  made  an  enemy  a  friend. 
What  a  glorious  thought,  that  when  you  die  you  but  sink  into 
the  arms  of  Jesus,  to  be  borne  to  the  land  of  everlasting  rest ! 
"To  die,"  the  apostle  says,  "is  gain."  I  can  imagine  when 
V  they  laid  our  Lord  in  Joseph's  tomb  one  might  have  seen  death 
litting  over  that  sepulchre,  saying,  "  I  have  Him  ,  He  is  my 
victim.  He  said  he  was  the  resurrection  and  the  life.  Now  I 
hold  Him  in  my  cold  embrace.  They  thought  He  was  never 
foing  to  die;  but  see  Him  now.     He  has  had  to  pay  tribute  to 


GOOD  NEWS.  35 

m«."  Never !  The  glorious  morning  comes,  the  Son  of  m»n 
bursts  asunder  the  bands  of  death,  and  rises,  a  Conqueror, 
from  the  grave.  "  Because  I  live,"  He  shouts,  "  ye  shall  live 
also."  \ts,ye  shall  live  also  —  is  it  not  good  news?  Ah,  my 
friends,  there  is  no  bad  news  about  a  gospel  which  makes  it  so 
sweet  to  live,  so  sweet  to  die. 

Another  terrible  enemy  that  troubled  me  was  Sin.  What  a 
terrible  hour  I  thought  it  would  be,  when  my  sins  from  child- 
hood, every  secret  thought,  every  evil  desire,  everything  done  in 
the  dark,  should  be  brought  to  the  light,  and  spread  out  before 
an  assembled  universe  !  Thank  God,  these  thoughts  are  gone. 
The  gospel  tells  me  my  sins  are  all  put  away  in  Christ.  Out  of 
love  to  me  He  has  taken  all  my  sins  and  cast  them  behind  his 
back.  That  is  a  safe  place  for  them.  God  never  turns  back  ; 
He  always  marches  on.  He  will  never  see  your  sins  if  they  arc 
behind  his  back  —  that  is  one  of  his  own  illustrations.  Satan 
has  to  get  behind  God  to  find  them.  How  far  away  are  they, 
and  can  they  ever  come  back  again!  ''  As  far  as  the  east  is 
from  the  west,  so  far  hath  He  remolded  our  transgressions  from 
us."  Not  some  of  them ;  He  takes  them  all  away.  You  may 
pile  up  your  sins  till  they  rise  like  a  dark  mountain,  and  then 
multiply  them  by  ten  thousand  for  those  you  cannot  think  of ; 
and  after  you  have  tried  to  enumerate  all  the  sins  you  have 
ever  committed,  just  let  me  bring  one  verse  in,  and  that  moun- 
tain will  melt  away :  "  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  his  Son, 
cleanseth  us  from  all  sin."  In  Ireland,  some  time  ago,  a  teacher 
asked  a  little  boy  if  there  was  anything  God  could  not  do ;  and 
the  little  fellow  said,  "  Yes  ;  He  cannot  see  my  sins  through  the 
blood  of  Christ."  That  is  just  what  He  cannot  do.  The  blood 
covers  them.  Is  it  not  good  news  that  you  can  get  rid  of  sin } 
You  come  to  Christ  a  sinner,  and  if  you  receive  His  gospel  your 
sins  are  taken  away.  You  are  invited  to  do  this ;  nay.  He 
entreats  you  to  do  it.  You  are  invited  to  make  an  exchange ; 
to  get  rid  of  all  your  sins,  and  to  take  Christ  and  his  righteous- 
ness in  the  place  of  them.     Is  not  that  good  news  ? 


j«  GOOD  NEWS. 

There  is  another  enemy  which  used  to  trouble  me  a  g.  a 
deal  — Judgment.  I  used  to  look  forward  to  the  terrible  aay 
when  I  should  be  summoned  before  God.  I  could  not  tell 
whether  I  should  hear  the  voice  of  Christ  saying.  "  Depart  from 
Me,  ye  cursed,"  or  whether  it  would  be,  "  Enter  thou  into  the 
joy  of  thy  Lord."  And  I  thought  that  till  he  stood  before  tlie 
great  white  throne  no  man  could  tell  whether  he  was  to  be  on 
the  right  hand  or  the  left.  But  the  gospel  tells  me  that  is 
already  settled  :  "  There  is  now  no  condemnation  to  them 
which  are  in  Christ  Jesus."  "  Verily,  verily" — and  when  you 
see  that  word  in  Scripture,  you  may  know  there  is  something 
very  important  coming  —  "  Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you,  he 
that  heareth  my  word,  and  believeth  on  Him  that  sent  Me,  hath 
everlasting  life,  anci  shall  not  come  into  condemnation,  but  is 
passed  from  deatli  unto  life."  Well,  now,  /  am  not  coming 
into  judgment  for  sin.  It  is  no  open  question.  God's  word 
has  settled  it.  Christ  was  judged  for  me,  and  died  in 
my  stead,  and  I  go  free.  He  tliat  believeth  hath  —  h-a-t-h, 
hath.  Is  not  that  good  news  .^  A  man  prayed  for  me  the 
other  day  that  1  might  obtain  eternal  life  at  last.  I  could 
not  have  said  Amen  to  that.  If  he  meant  it  in  this  sense,  I 
obtained  eternal  life  nineteen  years  ago,  when  I  was  converted. 
What  is  the  gift  of  God,  if  it  is  not  eternal  life  .^  And  what 
makes  the  gospel  such  good  news  1  Is  it  not  that  it  offers  eter- 
nal life  to  every  poor  sinner  who  will  take  it  1  If  an  angel  came 
straight  from  the  throne  of  God,  and  proclaimed  that  God  had 
sent  him  he^-^  to  offer  us  any  one  thing  we  might  ask  —  that 
each  one  should  have  his  own  petition  granted  —  what  would 
be  your  cry  }  There  would  be  but  one  response,  and  the  cry 
would  make  heaven  ring:  "  Eternal  life  !  eternal  life  !  "  Every- 
thing else  would  float  away  into  nothingness.  It  is  life  men 
want,  men  value  most.  Let  a  man  worth  a  million  dollars  be 
on  a  wrecked  vessel,  and  if  he  could  just  save  his  life  for  six 
months  by  giving  that  million,  he  would  give  it  in  an  instant. 
But  the  gospel  is  not  a  six  months'  gift.  "  The  i^t'ft  of  Cod  is 
eternal  I i/r."     And  is  it   not  one  of  the  greatest   marvels  tiiai 


GOOD  NEWS.  37 

men  have  to  stand  and  plead,  and  pray  and  beseech  their  fellow- 
men  to  take  this  precious  gift  of  God  ? 

My  friends,  there  is  one  spot  on  earth  where  the  fear  of  Death, 
of  Sin,  and  of  Judgment,  need  never  trouble  us,  the  only  safe 
spot  on  earth  where  the  sinner  can  stand  —  Calvary.  Out  in 
our  western  country,  in  the  autumn,  when  men  go  hunting,  and 
there  has  not  been  any  rain  for  months,  sometimes  the  prairie 
grass  catches  fire.  Sometimes,  when 'the  wind  is  strong,  the 
flames  may  be  seen  rolling  along,  twenty  feet  high,  destroying 
man  and  beast  in  their  onward  rush.  When  the  frontiersmen 
see  what  is  coming,  what  do  they  do  to  escape  ?  They  know 
they  cannot  run  as  fast  as  the  fire  can  run.  Not  the  fleetest 
horse  can  escape  it.  They  just  take  a  match  and  light  the  grass 
around  them.  The  flames  sweep  onwards  ;  they  take  their  stand 
in  the  burnt  district,  and  are  safe.  They  hear  the  flames  roar 
as  they  come  along ;  they  see  death  bearing  down  upon  them 
with  resistless  fury,  but  they  do  not  fear.  They  do  not  even 
tremble  as  the  ocean  of  flame  surges  around  tliem,  for  over  the 
place  where  they  stand  the  fire  has  already  passed,  and  there  is 
no  danger.  There  is  nothing  for  the  fire  to  burn.  And  there  is 
one  spot  on  earth  that  God  has  swept  over.  Eighteen  hundred 
years  ago  the  storm  burst  on  Calvary,  and  the  Son  of  God  took 
it  into  his  own  bosom,  and  now,  if  we  take  our  stand  by  the 
Cross,  we  are  safe  for  time  and  for  eternity. 

Sinner,  would  you  be  safe  to-night  ?  Would  you  be  free 
from  the  condemnation  of  the  sins  that  are  past,  from  the  power 
of  the  temptations  that  are  to  come  .''  Then  take  your  stand 
on  the  Rock  of  Ages.  Let  death,  let  the  grave,  let  the  judg- 
ment come,  the  victory  is  Christ's  and  yours  through  Him.  Oh, 
will  you  not  receive  this  gospel  to-night  —  this  wonderful  mes- 
Some  people,  when  the  gospel  is  preached,  put  on  a  long  face, 
as  if  they  had  to  attend  a  funeral,  or  witness  an  execution  or 
hear  some  dry,  stupid  lecture  or  sermon.  It  was  my  privilege 
to  go  into  Richmond  with  General  Grant's  army.  I  had  not 
been  long  there  before  it  was  announced  that  the  negroes  were 


j8  GOOD  NEWS. 

going  to  have  a  jubilee  meeting.  These  coloured  people  were 
just  coming  into  liberty ;  their  chains  were  falling  off,  and  they 
were  just  awakening  to  the  fact  that  they  were  free.  I  thought 
it  would  be  a  great  event,  and  I  went  down  to  the  African 
Church,  one  of  the  largest  in  the  South,  and  found  it  crowded. 
One  of  the  coloured  chaplains  of  a  northern  regiment  had 
offered  to  speak.  I  have  heard  many  eloquent  men  in  Europe 
and  in  America,  but  I  do  not  think  I  ever  heard  eloquence  such 
as  I  heard  that  day.  He  said,  "  Mothers  !  you  rejoice  to-day  ; 
you  are  for  ever  free  !  That  little  child  has  been  torn  from 
your  embrace,  and  sold  off  to  some  distant  state  for  the  last 
time.  Your  hearts  are  never  to  be  broken  again  in  that  way  ; 
you  are  free."  The  women  clapped  their  hands  and  shouted  at 
the  top  of  their  voices.  "  Glory,  glory  to  God."  It  was  good 
news  to  them,  and  they  believed  it.  It  filled  them  full  of  joy. 
Then  he  turned  to  the  young  men,  and  said,  "  Young  men  ! 
you  rejoice  to-day ;  you  have  heard  the  crack  of  the  slave- 
driver's  whip  for  the  last  time ;  your  posterity  shall  be  free  ; 
young  men  rejoice  to-day,  you  are  for  ever  free  !  "  And  they 
clapped  their  hands,  and  shouted,  "  Glory  to  God  !  "  They 
believed  the  good  tidings.  "  Young  maidens  !  "  he  said,  "  you 
rejoice  to-day.  You  have  been  put  on  the  auction-block  and 
sold  for  the  last  time ;  you  are  free  —  for  ever  free  !  "  They 
believed  it,  and  lifting  up  their  voices,  shouted,  "  Glory  be  to 
God  !  "  I  never  was  in  such  a  meeting.  They  bdieved  that  it 
was  good  news  to  them. 

My  friends,  I  bring  you  better  tidings  than  that.  No  coloured 
man  or  woman  ever  had  such  a  mean,  wicked,  cruel  master  as 
those  that  are  serving  Satan.  Do  I  speak  to  a  man  who  is  a  slave 
to  strong  drink  >  Christ  can  give  you  strength  to  hurl  the  cup 
from  you,  and  make  you  a  sober  man,  a  loving  husband,  a  kind 
father.  Yes,  poor  wife  of  the  drunkard.  He  gives  you  good  news ; 
your  husband  may  become  a  sober  ma)i  again.  And  you,  poor 
sinner,  you  who  have  been  so  rebellious  and  wayward,  tlie  gospel 
brings  a  message  of  forgiveness  to  you.  God  wants  you  to  be  re- 
conciled to  Him.    "  Be  ye  reconciled  unto  God."    It  is  his  message 


GOOD  NEWS.  %r, 

to  you  —  a  message  of  friendship.     Here  is  a  little  story  of  recon- 
ciliation which  I  was  told  lately ;  perhaps  it  may  help  you  a  little  : 

There  was  an  Englishman  who  had  an  only  son  ;  and  only 
sons  are  often  petted,  and  humoured,  and  ruined.  This  boy 
became  very  headstrong,  and  very  often  he  and  his  father  had 
trouble.  One  day  they  had  a  quarrel,  and  the  father  was  very 
angry,  and  so  was  the  son ;  and  the  father  said  he  wished  the 
boy  would  leave  home  and  never  come  back.  The  boy  said  he 
would  go,  and  would  not  come  into  his  father's  house  again  till 
he  sent  for  him.  The  father  said  he  would  never  send  for 
him.  Well,  away  went  the  boy.  But  when  a  father  gives  up  a 
boy,  a  mother  does  not.  You  mothers  will  understand  that, 
but  the  fathers  may  not.  You  know  there  is  no  love  on  earth 
so  strong  as  a  mother's  love.  A  great  many  things  may  separate 
a  man  and  his  wife ;  a  great  many  things  may  separate  a  father 
from  a  son ;  but  there  is  nothing  in  the  wide  world  that  can 
ever  separate  a  true  mother  from  her  child.  To  be  sure,  there 
are  some  mothers  that  have  drunk  so  much  liquor,  that  they 
have  drunk  up  all  their  affection.  But  I  am  talking  about  a 
true  mother ;  and  she  would  never  cast  off  her  boy. 

Well,  the  mother  began  to  write,  and  plead  with  the  boy  to 
write  to  his  father  first,  and  he  would  forgive  him  ;  but  the  boy 
said,  "  I  will  never  go  home  till  father  asks  me."  Then  she 
pled  with  the  father,  but  the  father  said,  "  No,  I  will  never  ask 
him."  At  last  the  mother  came  down  to  her  sick-bed,  broken- 
hearted, and  when  she  was  given  up  by  tiie  physicians  to  die, 
the  husband,  anxious  to  gratify  her  last  wish,  wanted  to  know 
if  there  was  nothing  he  could  do  for  her  before  she  died.  The 
mother  gave  him  a  look ;  he  well  knew  what  it  meant.  Then 
*she  said,  "  Yes,  there  is  one  thing  you  can  do.  You  can  send 
for  my  boy.  That  is  the  only  wish  on  earth  you  can  gratify. 
If  you  do  not  pity  him  and  love  him  when  I  am  dead  and  gone, 
who  will?"  "Well,"  said  the  father,  "  I  will  send  word  to  him 
that  you  want  to  see  him."  ^'  No,"  she  says,  "  you  know  he 
will  not  come  for  me.  If  ever  I  see  him  you  must  send  for 
him.     At  last  the  father  went  to  his  office  and  wrote  a   despatch 


\/ 


40  GOOD  NEWS. 

in  his  own  name,  aikiag  me  ooy  to  come    home.     As    soon   as 
he  got  the  invitation  from  his  father  he  started  off  to  see  his 
dying  mother.     When  he  opened  the  door  to  go  in    he  found 
his  mother  dying,  and  his  father  by  the  bedside.     The  father 
heard  the  door  open,  and  saw  the  boy,  but  instead  of  going  to 
meet  him  he  went  to  another  part  of   the  room,  and  refused   to 
speak  to  him.     His  mother  seized  his  hand  —  how  she   had 
longed  to  press  it  !     She  kissed  him,  and  then  said,  '*  Now,  my 
son,  just  speak  to  your  father.     You  speak  first,  and  it  will  all 
be  over."     But  the  boy  said,  "  No,  mother,  I  will  not  speak  to 
him  until  he  speaks  to  me."     She  took  her  husband's  hand  in 
one    hand    and    the  boy's    in   the  other,  and  spent  her  dying 
moments  in  trying  to  bring  about  a  reconciliation.     Then  just 
as  she  was  expiring  —  she  could  not  speak  —  so  she  put   the 
hand   of  the  wayward  boy  into   the  hand    of  the  father,  and 
passed  away  !     The  boy  looked  at  the  mother,  and  the  father 
at  the  wife,  and  at  last  the  father's  heart  broke,  and  he  opened 
his  arms,  and  took   that  boy  to  his  bosom,  and  by  that  body 
they  were  reconciled.     Sinner,  that  is  only  a  faint  type,  a  poor 
illustration,  because  God  is  not  angry  with  you.     I  bring  you 
to-night  to  the  dead  body  of  Christ.     I  ask  you  to  look  at  the 
wounds  in  his  hands  and  feet,  and  the  wound  in  his  side.    And 
I  ask    you,  "  Will    you    not    be    reconciled?"     When    he    left 
heaven,  He  went  down  into  the  manger  that  He  might  get  hold 
of  the  vilest  sinner,  and  put  the  hand  of  the  wayward  prodi- 
gal into  that  of  the  Father,  and  He  died  that  you  and  I  miglii 
be    reconciled.     If  you    take    my  advice    you    will    not    sleep 
to-night  until  you  are  reconciled.     "  Be  ye  reconciled."     Oh. 
this    gospel   of  reconciliation  !     My  friends,    is    it  not  a  glad 
gospel } 

And  then  it  is  2^  free  gospel;  any  one  may  iia\c  11.  You 
need  not  ask,  "  For  whom  is  this  good  news.  It  is  for  your- 
self. If  you  would  like  Christ's  own  word  for  it,  come  with  me 
to  that  scene  in  Jerusalem  where  the  disciples  are  bidding  Him 
farewell.     Calvary  with  all  its  horrors  is  behind  Him;  Gethsem- 


GOOD  NEWS.  41 

ane  is  over,  and  Pilate's  judgment  hall.  He  has  passed  the 
grave,  and  is  about  to  take  his  place  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
Father.  Around  Him  stands  his  little  band  of  disciples,  the 
little  church  He  was  to  leave  behind  Him  to  be  his  witnesses 
The  hour  of  parting  has  come,  and  He  has  some  "  last  words  ' 
for  them.  Is  he  thinking  about  himself  in  these  closing  moments  ' 
Is  He  thinking  about  the  throne  that  is  waiting  Him,  and  thr 
Father's  smile  that  will  welcome  liim  to  heaven?  Is  He 
going  over  in  memory  the  scenes  of  the  past ;  or  is  He  think- 
ing of  the  friends  who  have  followed  Him  so  far,  who  will  miss 
Him  so  much  when  He  is  gone?  No,  He  is  thinking  about 
you.  You  imagined  He  would  think  of  those  who  loved  Him  .^ 
No,  sinner,  He  thought  of  you  then.  He  thought  of  His  ene- 
mies, those  who  shunned  Him,  those  who  despised  Him,  those 
who  killed  Him  —  He  thought  what  more  He  could  do  foi 
them.  He  thought  of  those  who  would  hate  Him,  of  those 
who  would  have  none  of  his  gospel,  of  those  who  would  say  ii 
was  too  good  to  be  true,  of  those  who  would  make  excuse  that 
He  never  died  for  thon.  And  then  turning  to  his  disciples,  his 
heart  just  bursting  with  compassion.  He  gives  them  his  fare- 
well charge,  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospe! 
TO  EVERY  CREATURE."  They  are  almost  his  last  w^ords,  "  to 
every  creature." 

I  can  imagine  Peter  saying,  "  Lord,  do  you  really  mean  that 
we  shall  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature?  "  "Yes,  Peter." 
"Shall we  go  back  to  Jerusalem  and  preach  the  gospel  to  those 
Jerusalem  sinners  who  murdered  you  ?  "  "  Yes,  Peter,  go 
back  and  tarry  there  until  you  are  endued  with  power  from  on 
high.  Offer  the  gospel  to  them  first.  Go  search  out  that  man 
who  spat  in  my  face  ;  tell  him  I  forgive  him ;  there  is  nothing 
in  my  heart  but  love  for  him.  Go,  search  out  the  man  who  put 
that  cruel  crown  of  thorns  on  my  brow;  tell  him  I  will  have  a 
crown  ready  for  him  in  my  kingdom,  if  he  will  accept  salvation ; 
there  shall  not  be  a  thorn  in  it,  and  he  shall  wear  it  for  ever 
and  ever  in  the  kingdom  of  his  Redeemer.  Find  out  that  man 
who  took  the  reed  from  my  hand,  and  smote  my  head,  driving 
6 


4M  GOOD  NEWS, 

the  thorns  deeper  into  my  brow.  If  he  will  accept  salvation  as 
A  gift,  I  will  give  him  a  sceptre,  and  he  shall  sway  it  over  the 
nations  of  the  earth.  Yes,  I  will  give  him  to  sit  with  Me  upon 
my  throne.  Go,  seek  that  man  who  struck  Me  with  the  palm 
of  his  hand;  find  him  and  preach  the  gospel  to  him;  tell  him 
that  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanseth  from  all  sin,  and  my 
blood  was  shed  for  him  freely."  Yes,  I  can  imagine  Him  say- 
ing, "  Go,  seek  out  that  poor  soldier  who  drove  the  spear  into 
my  side ;  tell  him  that  there  is  a  nearer  way  to  my  heart  than 
that.  Tell  him  that  I  forgive  him  freely;  and  tell  him  I  will 
make  him  a  soldier  of  the  cross,  and  my  banner  over  him  shall 
be  love." 

I  thank  God  that  the  gospel  is  to  be  preached  to  every  creat- 
ure. I  thank  God  the  commission  is  so  free.  There  is  no  man 
so  far  gone,  but  the  grace  of  God  can  reach  him ;  no  man  so 
desperate  or  so  black,  but  He  can  forgive  him.  Yes,  I  thank 
God  I  can  preach  the  gospel  to  the  man  or  the  woman  who  is 
as  black  as  hell  itself.  I  thank  God  for  the  "  whosoevers  "  of 
the  invitations  of  Christ.  "  God  so  loved  the  world  that  He 
gave  his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  on  Him 
should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting^life,"  and  ''Whosoa^er 
will,  let  him  take  the  water  of  life  freely." 

I  heard  of  a  woman  once  who  thought  there  was  no  promise 
in  the  Bible  for  her,  they  were  all  for  other  people.  One  day 
she  got  a  letter,  and  when  she  opened  it,  found  it  was  not  for 
her  at  all,  but  for  some  other  woman  of  the  same  name.  It  led 
her  to  ask  herself,  "  If  I  should  find  some  promise  in  the  Bible 
directed  to  me,  how  should  I  know  that  it  meant  me,  and  not 
some  other  woman }  "  And  she  found  out  that  she  must  just 
take  God  at  his  word,  and  include  herself  among  the  "whoso- 
evers  "  and  the  "  every  creatures  "  to  whom  the  gospel  is  freely 
preached.  I  know  that  word  "  whosoever  "  means  every  man, 
every  woman,  every  child  in  this  wide  world.  It  means  that 
boy  down  there,  that  grey-haired  man,  that  maiden  in  the  blush 
of  youth,  that  young  man  breaking  a  mother's  heart,  that  drunk- 
ard steeped  in  misery  and   sin.     Oh,  my  friends,  will  you  not 


GOOD  NFAVS. 


43 


believe  this  good  news  >  Will  you  not  receive  this  wonderful 
gospel  of  Christ  ?  Will  you  not  believe,  poor  sinner,  that  it 
means _>'^«/     Will  you  say  it  is  too  good  to  be  true? 

I  was  in  Ohio  a  few  years  ago,  and  was  invited  to  preach  in 
the  State  prison.  Eleven  hundred  convicts  were  brought  into 
the  chapel,  and  all  sat  in  front  of  me.  After  I  had  got  through 
the  preaching,  the  chaplain  said  to  roe :  "  Mr.  Moody,  I  want 
to  tell  you  of  a  scene  which  occurred  in  this  room.  A  few  years 
ago,  our  commissioners  went  to  the  governor  of  the  State,  and 
got  him  to  promise  that  he  would  pardon  five  men  for  good 
behaviour.  The  governor  consented,  with  this  understanding  — 
that  the  record  was  to  be  kept  secret,  and  that  at  the  end  of  six 
months  the  five  men  highest  on  the  roll  should  receive  a  pardon, 
regardless  of  who  or  what  they  were.  At  the  end  of  six  months 
the  prisoners  were  all  brought  into  the  chapel ;  the  commission- 
ers came  up,  and  the  President  stood  up  on  the  platform,  and 
putting  his  hand  in  his  pocket,  brought  out  some  papers,  and 
said,  '  I  hold  in  my  hand  pardons  for  five  men.'  "  The  chap- 
lain told  me  he  never  witnessed  anything  on  earth  like  it. 
Every  man  was  as  still  as  death ;  many  were  deadly  pale,  and 
the  suspense  was  awful ;  it  seemed  as  if  every  heart  had  ceased 
to  beat.  The  commissioner  went  on  to  tell  them  how  they  had 
got  the  pardon ;  but  the  chaplain  interrupted  him.  "  Before 
you  make  your  speech,  read  out  the  names.  This  suspense  is 
awful."  So  he  read  out  the  first  name,  "  Reuben  Johnson  will 
come  and  get  his  pardon  ;  "  and  he  held  it  out,  but  none  came 
forward.  He  said  to  the  governor,  "Are  all  the  prisoners  here  }  " 
The  governor  told  him  they  were  all  there.  Then  he  said  again, 
"  Reuben  Johnson  will  come  and  get  his  pardon.  It  is  signed 
and  sealed  by  the  governor.  He  is  a  free  man."  Not  one 
moved  The  chaplain  told  me  he  looked  right  down  where 
Reub^  was ;  he  was  well  known  ;  he  had  been  nineteen  years 
there,  and  many  were  looking  round  to  see  him  spring  to  his 
feet.  But  he  himself  was  looking  round  to  see  the  fortunate 
man  who  had  got  his  pardon.  Finally  the  chaplain  caught  his 
eye  and  said,   "  Reuben,  you   are  the  man."     Reuben   turned 


14  GOOD  NEWS. 

round  and  looked  behind  him  to  see  where  Reuben  was.  The 
chaplain  said  the  second  time,  "  Reuben,  you  are  the  man ;  *' 
and  the  second  time  he  looked  round,  thinking  it  must  be  some 
other  Reuben.  So  men  do  not  believe  the  gospel  is  for  them. 
They  think  it  is  too  good,  and  pass  it  over  their  shoulders  to 
the  next  man.  ^m^.  you  are  the  man  to-night.  Well,  the  chap- 
lain could  see  where  Reuben  was,  and  he  had  to  say  three 
times,  "  Reuben,  come  and  get  your  pardon."  At  last  the 
truth  began  to  steal  over  the  old  man ;  he  got  up  and  came 
along  down  the  hall,  trembling  from  head  to  foot,  and  when  he 
got  the  pardon  he  looked  at  it,  and  went-back  to  his  seat,  and 
buried  his  face  in  his  hands,  and  wept.  When  the  prisoners 
got  into  the  ranks  to  go  back  to  the  cells,  Reuben  got  into  the 
ranks  too,  and  the  chaplain  had  to  call  to  him,  "  Reuben,  get 
out  of  the  ranks ;  you  are  a  free  man,  you  are  no  longer  a  pris- 
oner." And  Reuben  stepped  out  of  the  ranks.  He  was  free! 
That  is  the  way  men  make  out  pardons.  They  make  them  out 
for  good  character  or  good  behaviour.  But  God  makes  out 
pardons  for  men  who  have  not  got  any  character,  who  liave  been 
very,  very  bad.  He  offers  a  pardon  to  every  sinner  on  earth 
if  he  will  take  it.  I  do  not  care  who  he  is  or  what  he  is  like. 
He  may  be  the  greatest  libertine  that  ever  walked  the  streets, 
or  the  greatest  blackguard  who  ever  lived,  or  the  greatest 
drunkard,  or  thief,  or  vagabond  ;  but  T  come  to-night  with  glad 
tidings,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  nery  creature. 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 
The  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and   to   save    thai 

WHICH    WAS    lost." — LUKE  XIX.    lO. 


To  me  this  is  one  of  the  sweetest  verses  in  the  whole  Bible.  In 
this  one  little  short  sentence  we  are  told  what  Christ  came  into 
this  world  for.  He  came  for  a  purpose ;  He  came  to  do  a 
work,  and  in  this  little  verse  the  whole  story  is  told.  He  came 
not  to  condemn  the  world,  but  that  the  world,  through  Him, 
might  be  saved. 

A  few  years  ago,  the  Prince  of  Wales  came  to  America,  and 
there  was  great  excitement  about  this  Crown  Prince  coming 
to  our  country.  The  papers  took  it  up,  and  began  to  discuss 
it,  and  a  great  many  were  wondering  what  he  came  for.  Was 
it  to  look  into  the  republican  government  ?  Was  it  for  his 
health  ?  Was  it  to  see  our  institutions  ?  or  for  this,  or  for  that  ? 
He  came,  and  went,  but  he  never  told  us  what  he  came  for. 
But  when  the  Prince  of  Heaven  came  down  into  this  world,  He 
told  us  what  He  came  for.  God  sent  Him,  and  He  came  to  do 
the  will  of  His  Father.  What  was  that  ?  "  To  seek  and  to  save 
that  which  was  lost."  And  you  cannot  find  any  place  in  Scrip- 
ture where  a  man  was  ever  sent  by  God  to  do  a  work  in  which 
he  failed.  God  sent  Moses  to  Egypt  to  bring  three  millions  of 
bondsmen  up  out  of  the  house  of  bondage  into  the  promised 
land.  Did  he  fail  ?  It  looked,  at  first,  as  if  he  were  going  to. 
If  we  had  been  in  the  Court  when  Pharaoh  said  to  Moses» 
"Who  is  God,  that  I  should  obey  Him.**  "  and  ordered  him  out 
of  his  presence,  we  might  have  thought  it  meant  failure.  But 
did  it?     God  sent  Elijah  to  stand  before  Ahab,  and  it  was  a 


|6  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 

bold  thing  when  he  told  him  there  should  be  neither  dew  noi 
rain  ;  but  didn't  he  lock  up  the  heavens  for  three  years  and  six 
months  ?  Now  here  is  God  sending  his  own  beloved  Son  from 
his  bosom,  from  the  throne,  down  into  this  world.  Do  you 
think  He  is  going  to  fail  ?  Thanks  be  to  God,  He  can  save  to 
the  uttermost,  and  there  is  not  a  man  in  this  city  who  may  not 
find  it  so,  if  he  is  willing  to  be  saved. 

I  find  a  great  blessing  to  myself  in  taking  up  a  passage  like 
this,  and  looking  all  around  it,  to  see  what  brought  it  out.  If 
you  look  back  to  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  chapter,  you  will 
find  Christ  coming  near  the  city  of  Jericho.  And,  sitting  by  the 
wayside,  was  a  poor,  blind  beggar.  Perhaps  he  has  been  there 
for  years,  led  out,  it  may  be,  by  one  of  his  children,  or  perhaps 
as  we  sometimes  see,  he  had  got  a  dog  to  lead  him  out.  There 
he  had  sat  for  years,  and  his  cry  had  been,  "  Please  give  a  poor, 
blind  man  a  farthing."  One  day,  as  he  was  sitting  there,  a  man 
came  down  from  Jerusalem,  and  seeing  the  poor,  blind  man, 
took  his  seat  by  his  side,  and  said,  "  Bartimeus,  I  have  good 
news  for  you."  "  What  is  it .'  "  said  the  blind  beggar.  "  There 
is  a  man  in  Israel  who  is  able  to  give  you  sight."  "Oh,  no," 
said  the  blind  beggar,  "  there  is  no  chance  of  my  ever  receiving 
sight.  I  was  born  blind,  and  nobody  born  blind  ever  got  sight. 
I  shall  never  see  in  this  world ;  I  may  in  the  world  to  come, 
but  I  must  go  through  this  world  blind."  "  But,"  said  the  man. 
"  let  me  tell  you,  I  was  at  Jerusalem  the  other  day,  and  the 
great  Galilean  prophet  was  there,  and  I  saw  a  man  who  was 
born  blind  that  had  received  his  sight;  and  I  never  saw. a  man 
with  better  sight.  He  does  not  need  to  use  glasses  ;  he  can  see 
quite  clear."  Then  for  the  first  time,  hope  rises  in  the  poor 
man's  heart,  and  he  asks  "  How  was  it  done  1  "  "  Why,  Jesus 
spat  on  the  ground  and  made  some  clay,  and  anointed  his 
eyes,"  (why,  that  is  enough  to  put  a  man's  sight  out,  even  if  he 
can  see!)  "and  sent  him  to  wash  in  the  pool  of  Siloam,  and 
while  he  was  doing  so,  he  got  two  good  eyes.  Yes,  it  is  so.  I 
talked  with  him,  and  I  didn't  see  a  man  in  all  Jerusalem  whc 
had  better  sight."     "What  did  he  charge?"  say«:  Bartiraeua. 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS.  47 

**hio«uiLg.  There  was  no  fee  or  doctor's  bill;  he  got  his  sight 
for  nothing.  You  just  tell  Him  what  you  want ;  you  don't  need 
to  have  an  influential  committee  to  call  on  Him,  or  any  import- 
ant deputation.  The  poor  have  as  much  influence  with  Him 
as  the  rich;  all  are  alike."  "What  is  his  name?  "  asks  Barti- 
meus.  "  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  And  if  He  ever  comes  this  way, 
don't  you  let  Him  by,  without  getting  your  case  laid  before 
Him."  And  the  blind  man  says  "  That  you  may  be  sure  of; 
He  shall  never  pass  this  way  without  my  seeking  Him." 

A  day  or  two  after,  he  is  led  out,  and  takes  his  seat  at  the 
usual  pluce,  still  crying  out  for  money.  All  at  once  he  hears 
the  footsteps  of  a  coming  multitude,  and  begins  to  cry,  "  Who 
is  it  ?  "  "  Tell  me,  who  is  it .?  "  Some  one  said  that  it  was  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  that  was  passing  by.  The  moment  he  hears  thai, 
he  says  to  himself,  "  Why,  that  is  the  man  who  gives  sight  to  the 
blind,"  and  he  lifted  up  his  cry,  "  Jesus,  thou  Son  of  David,  have 
mercy  upon  me  !  "  I  don't  know  who  it  was  —  perhaps  it  was 
Peter  —  who  said  to  the  man,  "  Hush  !  keep  still."  He  thought 
the  Lord  was  going  up  to  Jerusalem  to  be  crowned  King,  and 
He  would  not  like  to  be  disturbed  by  a  poor  blind  beggar.  Oh 
they  did  not  know  the  Son  of  God  when  He  was  here !  He 
would  hush  every  harp  in  heaven  to  hear  a  sinner  pray ;  no 
music  delights  Him  so  much.  But  Bartimeus  lifted  up  his  voice 
louder,  "  Thou  Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me."  His  prayer 
reached  the  ear  of  the  Son  of  God,  as  prayer  always  will,  and 
His  footsteps  were  arrested.  He  told  them  to  bring  the  man. 
"Bartimeus,"  they  said,  "be  of  good  cheer,  arise,  He  calleth 
thee;  "  and  He  never  called  any  one,  but  He  had  something 
good  in  store  for  him.  Oh,  sinner!  remember  that  to-night. 
They  led  the  blind  man  to  Jesus.  The  Lord  says,  "  What  shall 
I  do  for  you  ?  "  "  Lord,  that  I  may  receive  my  sight."  "  You 
shall  have  it,"  the  Lord  said;  and  straightway  his  eyes  were 
opened. 

I  should  have  liked  to  have  been  there,  to  see  that  wonderful 
scene.  The  first  object  that  met  his  gaze  was  the  Son  of  God 
Himself,  and  now  among  the  shouting  multitude,  no  one  shouts 


48  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 

louder  than  the  poor  blind  man  that  has  got  his  sight.  He 
glorifies  God,  and  I  fancy  I  can  hear  him  shouting  "  Hosanna 
to  the  Son  of  David,"  more  sweetly  than  Mr.  Sankey  can  sing. 
Pardon  me,  if  I  now  draw  a  little  on  my  imagination.  Bar- 
timeus  gets  into  Jericho,  and  he  says,  "  I  will  go  and  see  my 
wife,  and  tell  her  about  it."  A  young  convert  always  wants  to 
talk  to  his  friends  about  salvation.  Away  he  goes  down  the 
street,  and  he  meets  a  man  who  passes  him,  goes  on  a  few  yards, 
and  then  turns  round  and  says,  "  Bartimeus,  is  that  you }  " 
■'  Yes."  "  Well,  I  thought  it  was,  but  I  could  not  believe  my 
eyes.  How  have  you  got  your  sight  ?  "  "  Oh,  I  just  met  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  outside  the  city,  and  asked  Him  to  have  mercy  on 
me."  "  Jesus  of  Nazareth!  What,  is  He  in  this  part  of  the 
country  ?  "  "  Yes.  He  is  right  here  in  Jericho.  He  is  now 
going  down  to  the  western  gate."  "I  should  like  to  see  Him," 
says  the  man,  and  away  he  runs  down  the  street ;  but  he  can- 
not catch  a  glimpse  of  Him,  even  though  he  stands  on  tiptoe, 
t>eing  little  of  stature,  and  on  account  of  the  great  throng  around 
1  lim.  "  Well,"  he  says,  "  I  am  not  going  to  be  disappointed  ; '" 
so  he  runs  on,  and  climbs  up  into  a  sycamore  tree.  "  If  I  can 
get  on  to  that  brpch,  hanging  right  over  the  highway,  He  can- 
not pass  without  my  getting  a  good  look  at  Him."  That  must 
have  been  a  very  strange  sight  to  see  the  rich  man  climbing  u]- 
a  tree  like  a  boy,  and  hiding  among  the  leaves,  where  he  thought 
nobody  would  see  him,  to  get  a  glimpse  of  the  passing  stranger  ! 
There  is  the  crowd  bursting  out,  and  he  looks  for  Jesus.  He 
looks  at  Peter ;  "  That's  not  Him."  He  looks  at  John  ;  "  That's 
not  Him."  At  last  his  eye  rested  on  One  fairer  than  the  sons  of 
men  ;  "  That's  Him  !  "  And  Zaccheus,  just  peeping  out  from 
among  the  branches,  looks  down  upon  the  wonderful  God-man 
in  amazement.  At  last  the  crowd  comes  to  the  tree;  it  looks 
as  if  Christ  were  going  by ;  but  He  stops  right  under  the  tree, 
looks  up,  and  says,  "  Zaccheus,  make  haste  and  come  down." 
1  can  imagine,  the  first  thought  in  his  mind  was,  "  Who  told 
Him  my  name?  I  was  never  introduced  to  Him."  Ah!  He 
knew  him.     Sinner,  Christ   knows   all   about   you.     He  knows 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS.  49 

your  name  and  your  house.     You  need  not  try  to  hide  from 
Him.     He  knows  where  you  are,  and  all  about  you. 

Some  people  do  not  believe  in  sudden  conversion.  I  should 
like  them  to  answer  me  when  was  Zaccheus  converted  ?  He 
;vas  certainly  in  his  sins  when  he  went  up  into  that  tree ;  he 
certainly  was  converted  when  he  came  down.  He  must  have 
been  converted  somewhere  between  the  branch  and  the  ground. 
It  didn't  take  a  long  while  to  convert  that  publican  !  "  Make 
haste  and  come  down.  I  shall  never  pass  this  way  again ;  this 
is  my  last  visit."  Zaccheus  made  haste,  and  came*  down  and 
received  Him  joyfully.  Did  you  ever  hear  of  any  one  receiv- 
ing Christ  in  any  other  way  ?  He  received  Him  joyfully.  Christ 
brings  joy  with  Him.  Sin,  gloom,  and  darkness  flee  away  ; 
light,  peace,  and  joy  burst  into  the  soul.  May  there  be  many 
that  shall  come  down  from  their  high  places,  and  receive  Christ 
to-night ! 

Some  one  may  ask,  "  How  do  you  know  that  he  was  con- 
verted }  "  I  think  he  gave  very  good  evidence.  I  would  like 
to  see  as  fruitful  evidence  of  conversion  here  to-night.  Let 
some  of  you  rich  men  be  converted,  and  give  half  your  goods  to 
feed  the  poor,  and  people  will  believe  pretty  quickly  that  it  is 
genuine  work !  But  there  is  better  evidence  even  than  that. 
"  If  I  have  taken  anything  from  any  man  falsely,  /  restore  him 
fourfold^  Very  good  evidence  that.  You  say  if  people  are 
converted  suddenly,  they  won't  hold  out.  Zaccheus  held  out 
long  enough  to  restore  four-fold.  We  should  like  to  have  a 
work  which  reaches  men's  pockets.  I  can  imagine  one  of  his 
servants  going  to  a  neighbour  next  morning,  with  a  check  for 
$100.  and  handing  it  over.  "  What  is  this  for  .^  "  "  Oh,  my 
master  defrauded  you  of  $25  a  few  years  ago,  and  this  is  resti- 
tution money."  That  would  give  confidence  in  Zaccheus' 
conversion  !  I  wish  a  few  cases  like  that  would  happen  now 
and  then  people  would  stop  talking  against  sudden  conver- 
sions. 

The  Lord  goes  to  be  the  publican's  guest,  and  while  He  is 
there  the  Pharisees  began  to  murmur  and  complain.     It  would 
4 


50  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS, 

have  been  a  good  thing  if  Pharisees  had  died  off  with  that  gen- 
eration ;  but,  unfortunately,  they  have  left  a  good  many  grand- 
children, living  down  here  in  the  afternoon  of  this  nineteenth 
century,  who  are  ever  complaining,  "  This  man  receiveth  sin- 
nersy  But  while  the  Pharisees  were  complaining,  the  Lord 
uttered  the  text  I  have  to-night,  "  I  did  not  come  to  Zaccheus 
to  make  him  wretched,  to  condemn  him,  to  torment  him;  I 
came  to  bless  and  save  him.  The  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek 
and  to  save  that  which  was  lost*' 

If  there  is  a  man  or  woman  in  this  audience  to-night  who 
believes  that  he  or  she  is  lost^  I  have  good  news  to  tell  you  — 
Christ  is  come  after  you.  I  was  at  the  Fulton  Street  prayer- 
meeting,  a  good  many  years  ago,  one  Saturday  night,  and  when 
the  meeting  was  over,  a  man  came  to  me,  and  said,  "  I  would 
like  to  have  you  go  down  to  the  city  prison  to-morrow,  and 
preach  to  the  prisoners.  I  said  I  would  be  very  glad  to  go. 
There  was  no  chapel  in  connection  with  that  prison,  and  I  was 
to  preach  to  them  in  their  cells.  I  had  to  stand  at  a  little  iron 
railing  and  talk  down  a  great,  long  narrow  passage  way,  to 
some  three  or  four  hundred  of  them,  I  suppose,  all  out  of 
sight.  It  was  pretty  difficult  work  ;  I  never  preached  to  the 
bare  walls  before.  When  it  was  over  I  thought  I  would  like  to 
see  to  whom  I  had  been  preaching,  and  how  they  had  received 
the  gospel.  I  went  to  the  first  door,  where  the  inmates  could 
have  heard  me  best,  and  looked  in  at  a  little  window,  and  there 
were  some  men  playing  cards.  I  suppose  they  had  been  play- 
ing all  the  while.  "  How  is  it  with  you  here  }  "  1  said.  "  Well, 
stranger,  we  don't  want  you  to  get  a  bad  idea  of  us.  False 
witnesses  swore  a  lie,  and  that  is  how  we  are  here."  *'  Oh,"  I 
said,  "  Christ  cannot  save  anybody  here  ;  there  is  nobody  last/' 
1  went  to  the  next  cell.  "  Well,  friend,  how  is  it  with  you  ?  " 
"  Oh,"  said  the  prisoner,  "  the  man  that  did  the  deed  looked 
very  much  like  me,  so  they  caught  me  and  I  am  here."  He 
was  innocent  too  !  I  passed  along  to  the  next  cell.  "  How  is 
it  with  you  ?  "  "  Well,  we  got  into  bad  company,  and  the  man 
that  did  it  got  clear,  and  we  got  taken  up,  but  we  never  did 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS.  51 

anything. "  I  went  along  to  the  next  cell.  "  How  is  it  with 
you  ?  "  '*  Our  trial  comes  on  next  week,  but  they  have  noth- 
ing against  us,  and  we'll  get  free."  I  went  round  nearly  every 
cell,  but  the  answer  was  always  the  same  —  they  had  never 
done  anything.  Why,  I  never  saw  so  many  innocent  men 
together  in  my  life  !  There  was  nobody  to  blame  but  the 
magistrates,  according  to  their  way  of  it.  These  men  were 
wrapping  their  filthy  rags  of  self-righteousness  about  them. 
And  that  has  been  the  story  for  six  thousand  years.  I  got  dis- 
couraged as  I  went  through  the  prison,  on,  and  on,  and  on,  cell 
after  cell,  and  every  man  had  an  excuse.  If  he  hadn't  one, 
the  devil  helped  him  to  make  one.  I  had  got  almost  through 
the  prison,  when  I  came  to  a  cell  and  found  a  man  with  his 
elbows  on  his  knees,  and  his  head  in  his  hands.  Two  little 
streams  of  tears  were  running  down  his  cheeks ;  they  did  not 
come  by  drops  that  time. 

"  What's  the  trouble  .?  "  I  said.  He  looked  up  the  picture  of 
remorse  and  despair.  "  Oh,  my  sins  are  more  than  I  can  bear." 
"Thank  God  for  that,"  I  replied.  "What,"  said  he,  "you  are 
the  man  that  has  been  preaching  to  us,  ain't  you  ?  "  "  Yes." 
"I  think  you  said  you  were  d.  friend?  "  **  I  am."  "And  yet 
you  are  glad  that  my  sins  are  more  than  I  can  bear  !  "  "I 
will  explain,"  I  said ;  "  if  your  sins  are  more  than  you  can 
bear,  won't  you  cast  them  on  One  who  will  bear  them  for  you  ?  " 
"Who's  that.?"  "The  Lord  Jesus."  "He  won't  bear  my 
sins."  "  Why  not }  "  "  I  have  sinned  against  Him  all  my  life." 
"  I  don't  care  if  you  have ;  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  God's 
Son,  cleanses  from  all  sin."  Then  I  told  him  how  Christ  had 
come  to  seek  and  save  that  which  was  lost ;  to  open  the  prison 
doors  and  set  the  captives  free.  It  was  like  a  cup  of  refresh- 
ment to  find  a  man  who  believed  he  was  lost,  so  I  stood  there, 
and  held  up  a  crucified  Saviour  to  him.  "  Christ  was  delivered 
for  our  offences,  died  for  our  sins,  rose  again  for  our  justifica- 
tion." For  a  long  time  the  man  could  not  believe  that  such  a 
miserable  wretch  could  be  saved.  He  went  on  to  enumerate 
His  sins,  and  T  told  him  that   the  blood  of  Christ  could  covei 


t2  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 

them  all.  After  1  had  talked  with  him  I  said,  "  Now  let  us 
pray."  He  got  down  on  his  knees  inside  the  cell,  and  I  got 
down  outside,  and  I  said,  "You  pray."  "Why,"  he  said,  "it 
would  be  blasphemy  for  me  to  call  on  God."  "You  call  on 
God,"  I  said.  He  knelt  down,  and,  like  the  poor  publican,  he 
lifted  up  his  voice  and  said,  "  God  be  merciful  to  me,  a  vile 
wretch  !  "  I  put  my  hand  through  the  window,  and  as  I  shook 
hands  with  him  a  tear  fell  on  my  hand  that  burned  down  into 
my  soul.  It  was  a  tear  of  repentance.  He  believed  he  was 
lost.  Then  1  tried  to  get  him  to  believe  that  Christ  had  come 
to  save  him.  I  left  him  still  in  darkness.  "  I  will  be  at  the 
hotel,"  I  said,  "  between  nine  and  ten  o'clock,  and  I  will  pray 
for  you."  Next  morning,  I  felt  so  much  interested  in  him,  that 
I  thought  I  must  see  him  before  I  went  back  to  Chicago.  No 
sooner  had  my  eye  lighted  on  his  face,  than  I  saw  remorse  and 
despair  had  fled  away,  and  his  countenance  was  beaming  with 
celestial  light;  the  tears  of  joy  had  come  into  his  eyes,  and  the 
fears  of  despair  were  gone.  The  Sun  of  Righteousness  had 
broken  out  across  his  path  ;  his  soul  was  leaping  within  him  for 
joy ;  he  had  received  Christ,  as  Zaccheus  did,  joyfully.  "  Tell 
me  about  it,"  I  said.  "Well,  I  do  not  know  what  time  it  was ; 
I  think  it  was  about  midnight.  I  had  been  in  distress  a  long 
time,  when  all  at  onc6  my  great  burden  fell  off,  and  now,  I 
believe  I  am  the  happiest  man  in  New  York."  I  think  he  was 
the  happiest  man  I  saw,  from  the  time  I  left  Chicago  till  I  got 
back  again.  His  face  was  lighted  up  with  the  light  that  comes 
from  the  celestial  hills.  I  bade  him  good-bye,  and  I  expect  to 
meet  him  in  another  world.  « 

Can  you  tell  me  why  the  Son  of  God  came  down  to  that 
prison  that  night,  and,  passing  cell  after  cell,  went  to  that  one, 
and  set  the  captive  free  ?  It  was  because  the  man  believed  he 
was  lost. 

But  you  say,  "  /do  not  feel  that."  Well,  never  mind  your 
feelings  ;  beliei^e  it.  Just  ask  yourself,  "  Am  I  saved,  or  am  I 
lost  ?  "  It  must  be  one  or  the  other.  There  is  no  neutrality 
about  the  matter.     A  man  cannot  be  saved  and  lost  at  the  same 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS,  53 

time ;  it  is  impossible.  Every  man  and  woman  in  this  audi- 
ence must  either  be  saved  or  lost,  if  the  Bible  be  true ;  and  if 
I  thought  it  was  not  true,  I  should  not  be  here  preaching,  and 
I  would  not  advise  you  people  to  come ;  but  if  the  Bible  is 
true,  every  man  and  every  woman  in  this  room  must  either  be 
in  the  ark  or  out  of  it,  either  saved  or  lost. 

I  do  not  believe  there  would  be  a  dry  eye  in  this  city  to-nigh i. 
if  we  would  but  wake  up  to  the  thought  of  what  it  is  to  be  lost. 
The  world  has  been  rocked  to  sleep  by  Satan,  who  is  going  up 
and  down  and  telling  people  that  it  doesn't  mean  anything.  I 
believe  in  the  old-fashioned  heaven  and  hell.  Christ  came 
down  to  save  us  from  a  terrible  hell,  and  any  man  who  is  cast 
down  to  hell  from  this  land  must  go  in  the  full  blaze  of  the 
gospel,  and  over  the  mangled  body  of  the  Son  of  God. 

We  hear  of  a  man  who  has  lost  his  health,  and  we  sympathize 
with  him,  and  we  say  it  is  very  sad.  Our  hearts  are  drawn  oui 
in  sympathy.  Here  is  another  man  who  has  lost  his  wealth, 
and  we  say,  "  That  is  very  sad."  Here  is  another  man  who 
has  lost  his  reputation,  his  standing  among  men.  "  That  is 
sadder  still,"  you  say.  We  know  what  it  is  to  lose  health  and 
wealth,  and  reputation,  but  what  is  the  loss  of  all  these  things 
compared  with  the  loss  of  the  soul  "i 

I  was  in  an  eye-infiniiary  in  Chicago  some  time  ago,  before 
the  great  fire.  A  mother  brought  a  beautiful  little  babe  to  the 
doctor — a  babe  only  a  few  months  old  —  and  wanted  the  doc- 
tor to  look  at  the  child's  eyes.  He  did  so,  and  pronounced  it 
blind  —  blind  for  life  —  it  will  never  see  again.  The  moment 
he  said  that,  the  mother  seized  it,  pressed  it  to  her  bosom,  and 
gave  a  terrible  scream.  It  pierced  my  heart,  and  I  could  not 
but  weep.  What  a  fearful  thought  to  that  mother !  "  Oh,  my 
darling,"  she  cried,  "  are  you  never  to  see  the  mother  that  gave 
you  birth.?  Oh,  doctor,  I  cannot  stand  it.  My  child,  my 
child  !  "  It  was  a  sight  to  move  any  heart.  But  what  is  the 
loss  of  eyesight  to  the  loss  of  a  soul }  I  had  a  thousand  times 
rather  have  these  eyes  taken  out  of  my  head  and  go  to  the  grave 
blind,  than  lose  my  soul.     I  have  a  son,  and  no  one  but   God 


V 


54  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 

knows  how  1  love  him  ;  but  I  would  see  those  eyes  dug  out  ol 
his  head  to-night  rather  than  see  him  grow  up  to  manhood  and 
go  down  to  the  grave  without  Christ  and  without  hope.  The 
loss  of  a  soul!  Christ  knew  what  it  meant.  That  is  what 
brought  Him  from  the  bosom  of  the  Father;  that  is  what 
brought  Him  from  the  throne ;  that  is  what  brought  Him  to 
Calvary.  The  Son  of  God  was  in  earnest.  When  He  died  on 
Calvary  it  was  to  save  a  lost  world  ;  it  was  to  save  your  soul 
and  mine. 

O  the  loss  of  the  soul  —  how  terrible  it  is  !  If  you  are  lost 
to-night,  I  beseech  you  do  not  rest  until  you  have  found  peace 
in  Christ.  Fathers  and  mothers,  if  you  have  children  out  of 
the  Ark,  do  not  rest  until  they  are  brought  into  it.  Do  not 
discourage  your  children  from  coming  to  Christ.  I  am  glad  to 
see  those  little  boys  and  girls  here.  Dear  children,  remember 
the  sermon  is  for  you.  The  Son  of  Man  came  for  you  as  much 
as  for  that  old  grey-haired  man,  yonder.  He  came  for  all,  rich 
and  poor,  young  and  old.  Young  man,  if  you  are  lost  may 
God  show  it  to  you,  and  may  you  press  into  the  kingdom.  The 
Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  you. 

There  is  a  story  told  of  Rowland  Hill.  He  was  once  preach- 
ing in  the  open  air  to  a  vast  audience.  Lady  Anne  Erskine 
was  riding  by,  and  she  asked  who  it  was  that  was  addressing 
the  vast  assembly.  She  was  told  that  it  was  the  celebrated 
Rowland  Hill.  Says  she,  "  I  have  heard  of  him ;  drive  me 
near  the  platform,  that  I  may  listen  to  him."  The  eye  of  Row- 
land Hill  rested  on  her ;  he  saw  that  she  belonged  to  royalty, 
and  turning  to  some  one,  he  inquired  who  she  was.  He  went 
on  preaching,  and  all  at  once  he  stopped.  "  My  friends,"  he 
said,  "  I  have  got  something  here  for  sale."  Everybody  was 
startled  to  think  that  a  minister  was  going  to  sell  something  in 
his  sermon.  "  I  am  going  to  sell  it  by  auction,  and  it  is  worth 
more  than  the  crown  of  all  Europe :  it  is  the  soul  of  Lady 
Anne  Erskine.  Will  any  one  bid  for  her  soul  ?  Hark  !  methinks 
I  hear  a  bid.  Who  bids  ?  Satan  bids.  What  will  you  give  t 
I  will  give  riches,  honor   and  pleasure ;    yea,  I  will  give  the 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS.  55 

*vhole  world  for  her  soul.  Hark  !  I  hear  another  bid  for  this 
soul.  Who  bids  ?  The  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Jesus,  what  will 
you  give  for  this  soul  ?  I  will  give  peace,  and  joy,  and  comfort 
that  the  world  knows  not  of;  yea,  I  will  give  eternal  life  for  her 
soul."  Turning  to  Lady  Anne  Erskine,  he  said,  "You  have 
heard  the  two  bidders  for  your  soul  —  which  shall  have  it  >  " 
She  ordered  the  footman  to  open  the  door,  and  pushing  her  way 
through  the  crowd,  she  says,  "  The  Lord  Jesus  shall  have  my 
soul,  if  He  will  accept  it."  That  may  be  true,  or  it  may  not; 
but  there  is  one  thing  I  know  to  be  true  —  there  are  two  bidders 
for  your  soul  to-night.  It  is  for  you  to  decide  which  shall  have 
it.  Satan  offers  you  what  he  cannot  give  ;  he  is  a  liar,  and  has 
been  from  the  foundation  of  the  world.  I  pity  the  man  who  is 
living  on  the  devil's  promises.  He  lied  to  Adam,  and  deceived 
him,  stripped  him  of  all  he  had,  and  then  left  him  in  his  lost, 
ruined  condition.  And  all  the  men  since  Adam,  living  on  the 
devil's  lies,  the  devil's  promises,  have  been  disappointed,  and 
will  be,  down  to  the  end  of  the  chapter.  But  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  is  able  to  give  all  He  offers,  and  He  offers  eternal  life  to 
every  lost  soul  here.  "  The  gift  of  God  is  eternal  life."  Who 
will  have  it  ?  Will  any  one  flash  it  over  the  wires,  and  let  it  go 
up  to  the  throne  of  God,  that  you  want  to  be  saved  ?  As  Mr. 
Sankey  sang  of  that  shout  around  the  throne,  my  heart  went 
up  to  God,  that  there  might  be  a  great  shout  for  lost  ones 
brought  home  to-night. 

Last  night  a  young  man  told  me  he  was  anxious  to  be  saved, 
but  Christ  had  never  sought  for  him.  I  said,  "  What  are  you 
waiting  for  }  "  "  Why,"  he  said,  "  I  am  waiting  for  Christ  to 
call  me;  as  soon  as  He  calls  me,  I  am  coming."  There  may 
be  others  here  who  have  got  the  same  notion.  Now,  I  do  not 
believe  there  is  a  man  in  the  city  that  the  Spirit  of  God  has  not 
striven  with  at  some  period  of  his  life.  I  do  not  believe  there 
is  a  person  in  this  audience  but  Christ  has  sought  after  him 
Bear  in  mind,  He  takes  the  place  of  the  seeker.  Every  man 
who  has  ever  been  saved  through  these  six  thousand  years  was 
sought  after   by  God.     No  sooner  did  Adam  fall,  than  God 


S6  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 

sought  Him.  ile  had  gone  away  frightened,  and  hid  himself 
away  among  the  bushes  in  the  garden,  but  God  took  the  place 
of  the  Seeker;  and  from  that  day  to  this,  God  has  always  had 
the  place  of  the  Seeker.  No  man  or  woman  in  this  audience 
has  been  saved  but  that  He  sought  them  first. 

What  do  we  read  in  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  St.  Luke  1  There 
is  a  shepherd  bringing  home  his  sheep  into  the  fold.  As  they 
pass  in,  he  stands  and  numbers  them.  I  can  see  him  counting 
one,  two,  three,  up  to  ninety-nine.  "  But,"  says  he,  "  I  ought 
to  have  a  hundred ;  I  must  have  made  a  mistake ;  "  and  he 
counts  them  over  again.  "  There  are  only  ninety-nine  here ;  I 
must  have  lost  one."  He  does  not  say,  "  I  will  let  him  find  his 
own  way  back."  No!  He  takes  the  place  of  the  Seeker  ;  he 
goes  out  into  the  mountain,  and  hunts  until  he  finds  the  lost 
one,  and  then  he  lays  it  on  his  shoulder  and  brings  it  home. 
Is  it  the  sheep  that  finds  the  shepherd  ?  No,  it  is  the  shepherd 
that  finds  and  brings  back  the  sheep.  He  rejoiced  to  find  it. 
Undoubtedly  the  sheep  was  very  glad  to  get  back  to  the  fold, 
but  it  was  the  shepherd  who  rejoiced,  and  who  called  his  friends 
and  said,  ''  Rejoice  with  me." 

Then  there  is  that  woman  who  lost  the  piece  of  money.  Some 
one  perhaps  had  paid  her  a  bill  that  day,  giving  her  ten  pieces 
of  silver.  As  she  retires  at  night,  she  takes  the  money  out  of 
her  pocket  and  counts  it.  "  Why,"  she  says,  "  I  have  only  got 
nine  pieces;  I  ought  to  have  ten."  She  counts  it  over  again. 
"Only  nine  pieces!  Where  have  I  been,"  she  says,  "since  1 
got  that  money  ?  I  am  sure  I  have  not  been  out  of  the  house." 
She  turns  her  pocket  wrong  side  out  and  there  she  finds  a  hole 
in  it.  Does  she  wait  until  the  money  gets  back  into  her  pocket  ? 
No.  She  takes  a  broom,  and  lights  a  candle,  and  sweeps  dili- 
gently. She  moves  the  sofa  and  the  tat)le  and  the  chairs,  and 
all  the  rest  of  the  furniture,  and  sweeps  in  every  corner  until 
she  finds  it.  And  when  she  has  found  it,  who  rejoices  }  The 
piece  of  money }  No  ;  the  woman  who  finds  it.  In  these 
parables,  Christ  brings  out  the  great  truth  that  God  takes  the 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS.  57 

place  of  Seeker.  People  talk  of  finding  Christ,  but  it  is  Christ 
who  first  finds  them. 

Another  young  man  told  me  last  night  that  he  was  too  great 
a  sinner  to  be  saved.  Why,  they  are  the  very  men  Christ  came 
after.  "This  man  receiveth  sinners  and  eateth  with  them." 
The  only  charge  they  could  bring  against  Christ  down  here  was 
that  He  was  receiving  bad  men.  ^  They  are  the  very  kind  of 
men  He  is  willing  to  receive.  All  that  you  have  got  to  do  is, 
to  prove  that  you  are  a  sinner,  and  I  will  prove  that  you  have 
got  a  Saviour.  And  the  greater  the  sinner,  the  greater  need 
you  have  of  a  Saviour.  You  say  your  heart  is  hard ;  well,  then, 
of  course,  you  want  Christ  to  soften  it.  You  cannot  do  it  your- 
self. The  harder  your  heart,  the  more  need  you  have  of  Christ ; 
the  blacker  you  are,  the  more  need  you  have  of  a  Saviour.  If 
your  sins  rise  up  before  you  like  a  dark  mountain,  bear  in  mind 
that  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanses  from  all  sin.  There  is 
no  sin  so  big,  or  so  black,  or  so  corrupt  and  vile,  but  the  blood 
of  Christ  can  cover  it.  So  I  preach  the  old  gospel  again,  *'  The 
Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost." 

It  was  Adam's  fall,  his  loss^  that  brought  out  God's  love.  God 
never  told  Adam  when  He  put  him  into  Eden,  that  he  loved 
him.  It  was  his  fall,  his  sin,  that  brought  it  out.  A  friend  of 
mine  from  Manchester  was  in  Chicago  a  few  years  ago,  and  he 
was  very  much  interested  in  the  city — a  great  city,  with  its 
300,000  or  400,000  inhabitants,  with  its  great  railway  centers, 
its  lumber  market,  its  pork  market,  and  its  grain  market.  He 
said  he  went  back  to  Manchester  and  told  his  friends  about 
Chicago.  But  he  could  not  get  anybody  very  much  interested 
in  it.  It  was  a  great  many  hundreds  of  miles  away ;  and  the 
people  did  not  seem  to  care  for  hearing  about  it.  But  one  day 
there  came  flashing  along  the  wire  the  sad  tidings  that  it  was  on 
fire ;  and,  my  friend  said,  the  Manchester  people  became  sud- 
denly interested  in  Chicago !  Every  despatch  that  came  they 
read ;  they  bought  up  the  papers,  and  devoured  every  particle 
of  news.  And  at  last,  when  the  despatch  came  that  Chicago 
WM  "burning  up,  that  100,000  people  were  turned  out  of  house 


58  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 

and  home,  then  every  one  became  so  interested  that  they  began 

to  weep  for  us.      They  came  forward  and  laid  down  their 

money  —  some  gave  hundreds  of  dollars  —  for  the  relief  of  the 

poor  sufferers.    It  was  the  calamity  of  Chicago  that  brought  out 

the  love  of  Manchester,  and  of  London,  and  of  Liverpool.     I 

was  in  that  terrible  fire,  and   I   saw  men  that  were  wealthy 

stripped  of  all  they  had.    That  Sunday  night,  when  they  retired, 

they  were  the  richest  men  in  Chicago.    Next  morning  they  were 

paupers.     But  I  did  not  see  a  man  weep.     But  when  the  news 

came   flashing   along  the  wire.    "Liverpool   gives  ten  thousand 

dollars;    Manchester  sends   five   thousand   dollars;    London   is 

giving  money   to  aid   the  city;"   and  as  the  news  kept  flashing 

that  help  was  coming,  our  city  was  broken-hearted.     I  saw  men 

weep    then.    The    love    that  was  shown  us  broke  our  hearts. 

So  the  love   of  God  ought  to  break  every   heart  in  this  city. 

It  was  love  that  brought  Christ   down  here  to  die  for  us.     It 

was   love    that    made    Him   leave    His   place  by   the    Father's 

throne  and  come  down  here  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was 

tost. 

But  now  for  the  sake  of  these  men  who  believe  Christ  never 
sought  them,  perhaps  it  would  be  well  to  say  how  He  seeks. 
There  are  a  great  many  ways  in  which  He  does  so.  Last  night 
I  found  a  man  in  the  inquiry-room,  and  the  Lord  had  been 
speaking  to  him  by  the  prayers  of  a  godly  sister  who  died 
a  while  ago.  Her  prayers  were  answered.  He  came  into  the 
inquiry-room  trembling  from  head  to  foot.  I  talked  to  him 
about  the  plan  of  salvation,  and  the  tears  trickled  down  his 
cheeks,  and  at  last  he  took  Christ  as  his  Saviour.  The  Son  of 
Man  sought  out  that  young  man  through  the  prayers  of  his  sister, 
and  then  through  her  death. 

Some  of  you  have  godly,  praying  mothers,  who  have  prayed 
whole  nights  for  your  soul,  and  who  have  now  gone  to  heaven. 
Did  not  you  take  their  hand  and  promise  that  you  would  meet 
them  there  ?  That  was  the  Son  of  God  seeking  you  by  your 
mother's  prayers  and  your  mother's  death.  Some  of  you  have 
got  faithful,  godly  ministers  who  weep  for  you  in  the  pulpit. 


CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS.  59 

and  plead  with  you  to  come  to  Christ.  You  have  heard  heart- 
searching  sermons,  and  the  truth  has  gone  down  deep  into  your 
heart,  and  tears  have  come  down  your  cheeks.  That  was  the 
Son  of  God  seeking  you.  Some  of  you  have  godly,  praying 
Sabbath-school  teachers  and  superintendents,  urging  you  to 
come  to  Christ.  Some  of  you,  perhaps,  have  got  young  men 
converted  round  you,  and  they  have  talked  with  you  and  pleaded 
with  you  to  come  to  Christ.  That  was  the  Son  of  God  seeking 
after  your  soul.  Some  of  you  have  had  a  tract  put  in  your 
hand  with  a  startling  title,  "  Eternity ;  Where  will  You  Spend 
It  ?"  and  the  arrow  has  gone  home.  That  was  the  Son  of  God 
seeking  after  you.  Many  of  you  have  been  laid  on  a  bed  of 
sickness,  when  you  had  time  to  think  and  meditate.  And  in 
the  silent  watches  of  the  night,  when  everybody  was  asleep 
the  spirit  of  God  has  come  into  your  chamber,  has  come 
to  your  bedside,  and  the  thought  came  stealing  through  your 
mind  that  you  ought  to  be  a  child  of  God  and  an  heir  of 
heaven.  That  was  the  Son  of  God  seeking  after  your  lost  soul. 
Some  of  you  have  had  little  children,  and  you  have  laid  them 
yonder  in  the  cemetery.  When  that  little  child  was  dying  yon 
promised  to  love  and  serve  God  Cah,  Have  you  kept  that  prom- 
ise?) That  was  the  Son  of  God  seeking  you.  He  took  that 
Httle  child  yonder  to  draw  your  affections  heavenwards. 

It  would  take  me  all  night  to  tell  the  different  ways  in  whicli 
the  Lord  seeks.  Can  you  rise  in  this  h^ll  to-night  and  say 
that  the  Son  of  God  never  sought  for  you  ^  I  do  not  believe 
there  is  a  man  or  woman  in  this  audience  or  in  the  whole  cit)- 
who  could  do  it.  My  friend,  He  has  been  calling  for  you  from 
your  earliest  childhood,  and  He  has  put  it  into  the  hearts  of 
God's  own  people  just  to  call  you  together  in  this  hall.  Prayer 
is  going  up  all  over  the  Christian  world  for  you.  Perhaps  there 
never  has  been  a  time  in  the  history  of  your  life  when  so  many 
were  praying  for  you  as  at  the  present  time.  That  is  the  Son 
of  God  seeking  for  your  soul  through  the  prayers  of  the 
Church,  through  the  prayers  of  ministers,  through  the  prayers 
of  the  saints  not  only  about  you  but   throughout  the  world.     I 


6o  CHRIST  SEEKING  SINNERS. 

am  receiving  letters  almost  daily  from  both  sides  the  ocean, 
saying  continual  prayer  is  going  up  to  God  for  this  work.     What 
does  it  mean?    God  has  laid  it  upon  the  heart  of  the  Church 
throughout  the  world  to  pray  for  this  work.     It  must  be  that 
God  has  something  good    in  store  for  us   here  ;    the    Son  of 
Man  is  come  to  seek  and   to  save  that  which  was  lost ;     and 
I    pray   that   the    Good    Shepherd    may    enter   this    hall    to- 
night, and  may  come  to  many  a  heart,    and   that    you    may 
hear   the   still   small    voice :      "  Behold,   I  stand    at    the    door 
and  knock  ;  if  any  man  hear  My  voice,  and  open  the  door,  ^ 
will  come  in  to  him  and  will  sup  with  him,  and  he  with  Me." 
O  friends,  open  the  door  to-night,  and  let  the  heavenly  Visitor 
in.     Do  not  turn  Him   away  any  longer.     Do  not  say  with 
Felix,  "  Go  thy  way  this  time,  and  when  I  have  a  convenient 
season  I  will  call  for  thee."     Make  this  a  convenient   season  ; 
make  this  the  night  of  your  salvation.     Receive  the  gift  of  God 
to-night,  and  open  the  door  of  your  heart,  and  say, "  Welcome: 
thrice  welcome  into  this  heart  of  mine." 


SINNERS    SEEKING   CHRIST 

SlIK   IHK    loRD  WHILE    He    MAY    BE    FOUND;    CALL    YE  UPOM 

Hm  WHILE  He  is  near." —  Isaiah  lv.  6. 


[  tLj^vE  been  speaking  about  the  Son  of  Man  seeking  the  lost ; 
out  now  I  want  to  take  up  the  other  side  of  the  case  —  man's 
side.  I  have  learned  this,  that  when  any  one  becomes  in 
earnest  about  his  soul's  salvation  he  begins  to  seek  God,  and  it 
does  not  take  a  great  while  for  them  to  meet ;  it  does  not  take 
long  for  m  anxious  sinner  to  meet  an  anxious  Saviour.  What 
do  we  read  in  the  29th  chapter  of  Jeremiah,  13th  verse  ?  "  Ye 
shall  seek  Me  and  find  Me  when  ye  shall  search  for  Me  wifA  all 
your  heart''  These  are  the  men  who  find  Christ  —  those  who 
seek  for  Him  with  all  their  heart.  I  am  tired  and  sick  of  half- 
heartedness.  You  don't  like  a  half-hearted  man ;  you  don't 
care  for  any  one  to  love  you  with  a  half  heart,  and  the  Lord 
won't  have  it.  If  we  are  going  to  seek  for  Him  and  find  Him, 
we  must  do  it  with  all  our  heart.  I  believe  the  reason  why  so 
few  people  find  Christ  is  because  they  do  not  search  for  Him 
with  all  their  heart ;  they  are  not  terribly  in  earnest  about  their 
soul's  salvation.  God  h  in  earnest;  everything  God  has  done 
proves  that  He  is  in  earnest  about  the  salvation  of  men's  souls. 
He  has  proved  it  by  giving  his  only  Son  to  die  for  us.  The 
Son  of  God  was  in  earnest  when  He  died.  What  is  Calvary 
but  a  proof  of  that?  And  the  Lord  wants  us  to  be  in  earnest 
when  it  comes  to  this  ^reat  question  of  the  soul's  salvation.     I 


62  SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST. 

never  saw  men  seeking  Him  with  all  their  hearts  but  they  soon 
found  Him. 

It  was  quite  refreshing,  one  night,  to  find  in  the  inquiry -room 
a  young  man  who  thought  he  was  not  worth  saving,  he  was  so 
vile  and  wicked.  There  was  hope  for  him  because  he  was  so 
desperately  in  earnest  about  his  soul.  He  thought  he  was 
worthless.  He  had  got  a  sight  of  himself  in  God's  looking- 
glass,  and  when  a  man  does  that  he  has  a  very  poor  opinion  of 
himself.  You  can  always  tell  when  a  man  is  a  great  way  from 
God — ^he  is  always  talking  about  himself,  and  how  good  he  is. 
But  the  moment  he  sees  God  by  the  eye  of  faith  he  is  down  on 
his  knees,  and,  like  Job,  he  cries,  ''Behold,  I  am  vile."  All  his 
goodness  flees  away.  What  men  want  is  to  be  in  earnest  about 
their  salvation,  and  they  will  soon  find  Christ.  You  do  not 
need  to  go  up  to  the  heights  to  bring  Him  down,  or  down  to 
the  depths  to  bring  Him  up,  or  to  go  ofi"  to  some  distant  city  to 
find  Him.  This  day  He  is  near  to  every  one  of  us.  I  heard 
some  one  in  the  inquiry-room  telling  a  young  person  to  go 
home  and  seek  Christ  in  his  closet.  I  would  not  dare  to  tell 
anyone  to  do  that.  You  might  be  dead  before  you  got  home. 
If  I  read  my  Bible  correctly,  the  man  who  preaches  the  gospel 
is  not  the  man  who  tells  me  to  seek  Christ  to-morrow  or  an  hour 
hence,  but  now.  He  is  near  to  every  one  of  us  this  minute  to 
save.  If  the  world  would  just  come  to  God  for  salvation,  and 
be  in  earnest  about  it,  they  would  find  the  Son  of  God  right  at 
the  door  of  their  heart. 

Suppose  I  should  say  I  lost  a  very  valuable  diamond  here 
last  night — I  have  not,  but  suppose  it — worth  $100,000.  I 
had  it  in  my  pocket  when  I  came  into  the  hall,  and  when  I  had 
done  preaching  I  found  it  was  not  in  my  pocket,  but  was  in  the 
hall  somewhere.  And  suppose  I  was  to  say  that  any  one  who 
found  it  could  have  it.  How  earnest  you  would  all  become! 
You  would  not  get  very  much  of  my  sermon ;  you  would  all  be 
thinking  of  the  diamond.  I  do  not  believe  the  poHce  could 
get  you  out  of  this  hall.  The  idea  of  finding  a  diamond  worth 
$100,000!     If  you  could  only  find  it,  it  would  lift  yoy  out  of 


SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST.  63 

poverty  at  once,  and  you  would  be  independent  for  the  rest  of 
vour  days.  Oh,  how  soon  everybody  would  become  terribly  in 
earnest  then !  I  would  to  God  I  could  get  men  to  seek  for 
Christ  in  the  same  way.  I  have  got  something  worth  more 
than  a  diamond  to  offer  you.  Is  not  salvation  —  eternal  life  — 
worth  more  than  all  the  diamonds  in  the  world  }  Suppose 
Gabriel  should  wing  his  way  from  the  throne  of  God  and  come 
down  here,  and  say  he  had  been  commissioned  by  Jehovah  to 
come  and  offer  to  this  assembly  any  one  gift  you  might  choose. 
You  could  have  just  what  you  chose,  but  only  one  thing.  What 
would  it  be  ?  The  wealth  of  this  city,  or  of  the  worid  ?  Would 
that  be  your  choice.?  Ten  thousand  times,  no  !  Your  one  cry 
would  be,  "  Life  !  eternal  life  !  " 

There  is  nothing  that  men  value  as  they  do  life.  Let  a  man 
be  out  on  a  wreck  that  is  fast  going  down.  He  is  worth  a  mil- 
lion dollars  and  his  only  chance  is  to  give  up  that  million 
dollars  just  to  save  the  life  of  the  body.  He  would  give  it  up 
in  a  moment.  "  Skin  for  skin ;  all  that  a  man  hath  will  he  give 
for  his  life."  I  understand  some  people  have  been  afraid  to 
come  to  this  hall  because  there  might  be  a  cry  of  "  Fire  !  fire  !  " 
and  a  panic,  and  they  might  lose  their  life.  Yet  there  are 
twenty  doors  to  the  building ;  I  do  not  know  that  I  ever  saw 
a  building  that  you  could  get  out  of  easier.  Yet  people  seem 
to  sleep,  and  to  forget  that  there  is  no  door  out  of  hell.  If  they 
enter  they  must  remain,  age  after  age.  Millions  on  millions  of 
years  will  roll  on,  but  there  will  be  no  door,  no  escape  out  of 
hell.  May  God  wake  up  this  slumbering  congregation  and 
make  you  anxious  about  your  souls.  People  talk  about  our 
being  earnest  and  fanatical  —  about  our  being  on  fire.  Would 
to  God  the  Church  was  on  fire;  this  world  would  soon  shake 
to  its  foundation.  May  God  wake  up  a  slumbering  Church  ! 
What  we  want  men  to  do  is  not  to  shout  "Amen,"  and  clasp 
their  hands.  The  deepest  and  quietest  waters  very  often  run 
swiftest.  We  want  men  to  go  right  to  work ;  there  will  be  a 
chance  for  you  to  shout  by-and-by.  Go  and  speak  to  your 
neighbour,  and  tell  him  of  Christ  and  heaven.     You   need   noi 


04  SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST. 

go  a  few  yards  down  these  streets  before  you  find  some  one 
who  is  passing  down  to  the  darkness  of  eternal  death.  Let  ui 
haste  to  the  rescue  !    ' 

What  we  want  to  see  is  men  really  wishing  to  become  Chris- 
tians, men  who  are  in  dead  earnest  about  it.  The  idea  of  hear- 
ing a  man  say  in  answer  to  the  question.  "  Do  you  want  to 
become  a  Christian  ?  "  "Well,  I  would  not  mind.''  My  friend, 
1  do  not  think  j'<?w  will  ever  get  into  the  kingdom  of  God  until 
you  change  your  language.  We  want  men  crying  from  the 
depths  of  their  heart,  "  I  7/"^;?/ to  be  saved."  On  the  day  of 
Pentecost  the  cry  was,  "  Men  and  brethren,  what  shall  we  do  }  " 
These  men  were  in  earnest,  and  ihey  found  Christ  right  there  ; 
three  thousand  found  Him,  when  they  sought  with  all  their 
hearts.  When  men  seek  Christ  as  they  do  wealth,  they  will 
soon  find  Him.  To  be  sure,  the  world  will  raise  a  cry  that  they 
are  excited.  Let  cotton  go  up  ten  or  fifteen  per  cent  before 
to-morrow  morning,  and  you  will  see  how  quickly  the  merchants 
will  get  excited  !  And  the  papers  don't  cry  it  down  either. 
They  say  it  is  healthy  excitement;  commerce  is  getting  on. 
But  when  you  begin  to  get  excited  about  your  soul's  salvation, 
and  are  in  earnest,  then  they  raise  the  cry,  "  Oh,  they  are  get- 
ting excited ;  most  unhealthy  state  of  things."  Yet  they  don't 
talk  about  men  hastening  down  to  death  by  thousands.  There 
is  the  poor  drunkard,  look  at  him  !  Hear  the  piercing  cry  going 
up  to  heaven  !  Yet  the"^Church  of  God  slumbers  and  sleeps. 
Here  and  there  is  an  inquirer,  and  yet  they  go  into  the  inquiry- 
room  as  if  they  were  half  asleep.  When  will  men  seek  for  Christ 
as  they  seek  for  wealth,  or  as  they  seek  for  honour .? 

I  am  told  that  when  the  war  broke  out  on  the  Gold  Coast, 
though  it  was  known  that  the  climate  was  a  very  unhealthy  one, 
and  a  great  many  who  went  there  would  never  return,  yet  hun- 
dreds and  thousands  of  men  wanted  to  go.  Why.?  They 
wanted  to  get  wealth,  and  from  wealth,  honour.  And  if  there 
is  a  chance  of  going  to  India,  no  end  of  men  are  willing  to  go. 
To   get   a  little   honour   they  will   sacrifice   comfort,  pleasure, 


SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST.  65 

health,  and  everything.  What  we  want,  is  to  have  men  seeking 
the  kingdom  of  God,  as  they  seek  for  honour  and  wealth. 

As  I  said,  if  life  is  in  danger,  how  terribly  in  earnest  men 
become.  That  is  right;  there  is  no  doubt  about  that.  But 
why  should  not  men  be  as  much  in  earnest  about  their  soul's 
salvation  ?  Why  should  not  every  man  and  woman  here  wake 
up  and  seek  the  Lord  with  all  their  heart  ?  Then,  the  Lord 
says,  you  shall  find  Him. 

There  is  a  story  told  of  a  vessel  that  was  wrecked,  and  was 
going  down  at  sea.  There  were  not  enough  lifeboats  to  take  all 
on  board.  When  the  vessel  went  down,  some  of  the  lifeboats 
were  near  the  vessel.  A  man  swam  from  the  wreck  just  as  it 
was  going  down,  to  one  of  the  boats ;  but  they  had  no  room  to 
take  him,  and  they  refused.  When  they  refused,  he  seized  hold 
of  the  boat  with  his  right  hand,  but  they  took  a  sword  and  cut 
off  his  fingers.  When  he  had  lost  tlie  fingers  of  his  right  hand, 
the  man  was  so  earnest  to  save  his  life  that  he  seized  the  boat 
with  his  left  hand ;  they  cut  off  the  fingers  of  that  hand  too. 
Then  the  man  swam  up  and  seized  the  boat  with  his  teeth,  and 
they  had  compassion  on  him  and  relented.  They  could  not  cut 
off  his  head,  so  they  took  him  in,  and  the  man  saved  his  life. 
Why }  Because  he  was  in  earnest.  Why  not  seek  your  soul's 
salvation  as  that  man  sought  to  save  his  life  ? 

Will  there  ever  be  a  better  time  ?  Will  there  ever  be  a  better 
time  for  that  old  man  whose  locks  are  growing  grey,  whose  eyes 
are  growing  dim,  and  who  is  hastening  to  the  grave  ?  Is  not 
this  the  very  best  time  for  him }  "  Seek  the  Lord  ivhile  He  may 
be  found''  There  is  a  man  in  the  middle  of  life.  Is  this  not 
the  best  time  for  him  to  seek  the  kingdom  of  God  !  Will  he 
ever  have  a  better  opportunity  }  Will  Christ  ever  be  more  will- 
ing to  save  than  now  ?  He  says,  *'  Come,  for  all  things  are  now 
ready."  Not  going  to  ^^,  but  are  now  ready.  There  is  a  young 
man.  My  friend,  is  it  not  the  best  time  for  you  to  seek  the 
kingdom  of  God?  Seek  the  Lord,  you  can  find  him  here 
to-night.  Can  you  say  that  you  will  find  Him  here  to-morrow? 
Will  anyone  rise  up  in  this  hall  and  say  that  ?  Young  man,  you 
6 


66  SINNEJiS  SEEKING  QHRIST 

know  not  what  to-morrow  may  bring  forth.  Do  you  know  that 
since  we  met  here  last  night  43,000  souls  have  passed  from  time 
to  eternity  ?  Do  you  know  that  every  time  the  clock  ticks  a 
soul  passes  away  ?  Is  not  this  the  best  time  for  you  to  seek  the 
kingdom  of  God  ? 

My  boy,  the  Lord  wants  you.  Seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  q\ 
God,  and  seek  Him  while  He  may  be  found.  Over  t\vent\' 
years  ago,  a  great,  revival  swept  over  this  land.  A  great  man\ 
men  stood  and  shook  their  heads ;  they  could  not  believe  it  was 
a  healthy  state  of  things.  The  Church  was  not  in  its  normal 
state !  The  Church  from  Maine  to  Minnesota,  and  on  to  Cali- 
fornia, was  astir.  And  as  you  passed  over  this  great  republic, 
over  its  western  prairies  and  mountains,  and  through  its  valleys, 
as  you  went  on  b»y  train,  and  as  you  passed  through  its  cities 
and  villages,  you  could  see  the  churches  lit  up ;  and  men  were 
flocking  into  the  kingdom  of  God  by  hundreds.  And  in  a  year 
and  a  half  or  two  years  there  were  more  than  half  a  million  souls 
brought  in.  Men  said  it  was  false  excitement,  wildfire,  and  it 
would  pass  away.  But,  my  friends,  it  was  grace  preceding 
judgment.  Little  did  we  know  that  our  nation  was  soon  to  be 
baptized  in  blood,  and  that  we  would  soon  hear  the  tramp  of  a 
milion  men,  that  hundreds  and  thousands  of  our  young  men, 
the  flower  of  our  nation,  would  soon  be  lying  in  a  soldier's 
grave.  But,  oh,  my  friends,  it  was  God  calling  his  people  in. 
He  was  preparing  our  nation  for  a  terrible  struggle. 

And  now,  it  seems  to  me  that  there  is  another  wave  of  bless- 
ing passing  over  this  earth.  Tidings  are  coming  from  all  parts 
of  the  world,  telling  us  of  the  great  work  God  is  doing.  The 
last  tidings  from  India,  told  us  of  a  blessed  work  going  on 
there.  The  last  tidings  from  Japan  and  from  other  places  — 
we  have  the  same  good  news  of  God  pouring  out  his  Spirit.  It 
was  only  the  other  day  that  two  men  came  up  here  from  a  town 
of  50,000  inhabitants,  and  wanted  us  to  go  there  ;  but  we  could 
not,  and  we  told  them  to  go  home  and  get  to  work  themselves 
To-day  one  of  them  told  us  that  tney  had  sixteen  last  night 
in  the  inquiry-room.     God  is  pouring  out  his  Spirit  everywhere. 


SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST.  67 

Everywhere  men  are  putting  in  the  sickle  and  bringing  their 
sheaves  and  laying  them  at  the  feet  of  the  Master.  I  believe 
we  are  living  in  the  days  that  our  fathers  prayed  for.  The 
heavens  are  open,  and  the  Spirit  of  God  is  descending  upon 
the  sons  of  men. 

Now,  this  time  of  revival  is  a  good  time  to  seek  the  Lord. 
Will  you  ever  have  a  better  time  ?  The  tidings  from  every 
city  is  this  —  the  people  are  praying.  It  is  a  question  in  my 
mind  if  there  was  ever  so  much  prayer  going  up  to  God  as  at 
the  present.  Not  only  here,  but  all  around  the  world,  we  have 
God's  people  making  their  hearts  burdened  for  the  salvation 
of  souls.  And  is  it  not  God  working?  Will  there  ever  be  a 
better  time  for  you  to  seek  the  kingdom  of  God  than  the 
present,  when  there  is  such  a  great  awakening,  when  there  is 
such  a  spirit  of  expectation  ;  when  the  Church  of  God  is  com- 
ing up  as  one  man,  and  the  spirit  of  unity  prevails  }  Think  of 
the  praying  ones  here.  Do  you  believe  there  were  ever  so 
many  men  and  women  praying  for  your  soul  as  there  are  here 
to-night?  Look  over  this  audience  —  what  are  these  Chris- 
tians doing  now !  They  are  silently  praying  to  God.  I  can 
see  they  are  praying.  There  is  a  young  man  with  his  mother 
sitting  by  his  side.  That  mother  is  pleading,  "  God  save  my 
boy  to-night !  "  May  it  go  down  deep  into  his  soul !  "  Seek 
ye  the  Lord  while  He  may  be  found." 

Now,  let  me  ask  you  a  question.  Do  you  believe  that  the 
Lord  can  be  found  here  to-night  ?  I  appeal  to  these  ministers 
present  at  my  side ;  do  you  believe  He  can?  They  answer 
"  Yes."  My  friends  do  you  believe  it  ?  Another  Yes  comes 
from  the  audience.  Well,  if  He  can,  is  it  not  the  height  of 
madness  for  any  man  or  woman  to  go  out  of  this  hall  without 
seeking  Him  ?  If  He  can  be  found,  why  not  seek  Him  ? 
Young  lady,  why  not  seek  Him  with  all  your  heart  ?  Young 
man,  why  not  seek  Christ  to-night  with  all  your  heart  ?  Why 
not  say,  "  I  must  be  saved  ?"  There  is  nothing  so  important  as 
this  great  question  of  salvation. 

Supposing  you  could  win  the  world,  what  would  you  do  with 


68  SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST. 

it  ?  Would  it  be  worth  as  much  as  Christ  ?  Let  everything 
else  be  laid  aside,  and  make  up  your  minds  that  you  will  not 
rest  until  you  have  sought  and  found  the  Lord  Jesus.  I  never 
knew  any  one  make  up  his  mind  to  seek  Him  but  he  soon  found 
Him.  At  Dublin  a  young  man  found  Christ.  He  went  home 
and  lived  so  godly  and  so  Christ-like,  that  two  of  his  brothers 
could  not  understand  what  had  wrought  the  change  in  him. 
They  left  Dublin  and  followed  us  to  Sheffield,  and  found 
Christ  there.  They  were  in  earnest.  But,  thanks  be  to  God, 
you  have  not  got  to  go  out  of  this  hall.  Christ  can  be  found 
here  to-night.  I  firmly  believe  every  one  here  can  find  Christ 
to-night  if  you  will  seek  for  Him  with  all  your  heart.  He  says, 
"Call  upon  Me."  Did  you  ever  hear  of  any  one  calling  on 
Christ  with  the  whole  heart,  that  Christ  didn't  answer }  Look 
at  that  thief  on  the  cross !  It  may  have  been  that  he  had  a 
praying  mother,  and  that  his  mother  taught  him  the  fifty-third 
chapter  of  Isaiah.  He  had  heard  Christ  pray  that  wonderful 
prayer,  "  Father,  forgive  them."  And  as  he  was  hanging  on 
the  cross  that  text  of  Scripture  came  to  his  mind,  *'  Seek  the 
Lord  while  He  may  be  found  ;  call  ye  upon  Him  while  He  is 
near."  The  truth  came  flashing  into  his  soul,  and  he  says, 
"  He  is  near  me  now ;  I  will  call  on  Him.  Lord,  remember 
me  when  Thou  comest  into  Thy  kingdom."  No  sooner  had  he 
called  than  the  Lord  said,  "  This  day  shalt  thou  be  with  Me  in 
paradise."  That  was  his  seeking  opportunity,  his  day.  My 
friends,  this  is  your  day  now.  I  believe  that  every  man  has  his 
day.  You  have  it  just  now  ;  why  not  call  upon  Him  just  now  ? 
Say,  as  the  poor  thief  did,  "  Lord  remember  me."  That  was 
his  golden  opportunity,  and  the  Lord  heard  and  answered  and 
saved  him.  Did  not  Bartimeus  call  on  Him  while  He  was  near? 
Christ  was  passing  by  Jericho  for  the  last  time,  and  he  cried 
out,  "  Thou  Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me."  And  did  not 
the  Lord  hear  his  prayer,  and  give  him  his  sight  ?  It  was  a 
good  thing  Zaccheus  called  —  or  rather  the  Lord  called  him, 
but  when  the  Lord  called  he  came.  May  the  Lord  call  many 
here,  and  may   you  respond,  "  Lord,  here  am  I ;    you   have 


i 

SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST.  69 

called  and  I  come."  Do  you  believe  the  Lord  will  call  a 
poor  sinner,  and  then  cast  him  out  ?  No  !  His  word  stands 
for  ever,  "  Him  that  cometh  to  Me  I  will  in  no  wise  cast 
out." 

I  was  glad  when  that  man  I  told  you  of,  said  he  felt  as  if  he 
was  too  bad.  Men  are  pretty  near  the  kingdom  of  God  when  they 
do  not  see  anything  good  in  themselves.  At  the  Fulton  Street 
prayer-meeting  a  man  came  in,  and  this  was  his  story.  He  said 
he  had  a  mother  who  prayed  for  him ;  he  was  a  wild,  reckless 
prodigal.  Some  time  after  his  mother's  death  he  began  to  be 
troubled.  He  thought  he  ought  to  get  into  new  company,  and 
leave  his  old  companions.  So  he  said  he  would  go  and  join  a 
secret  society ;  he  thought  he  would  join  the  Odd  Fellows. 
They  went  and  made  inquiry  about  him,  and  they  found  he  was 
a  drunken  sailor,  so  they  black-balled  him.  They  would  not 
have  him.  He  went  to  the  Freemasons ;  he  had  nobody  to 
recommend  him,  so  they  inquired  and  found  there  was  no  good 
in  his  character,  and  they,  too,  black-balled  him.  They  didn't 
want  him.  One  day,  some  one  handed  him  a  little  notice  in  the 
street  about  the  prayer-meeting,  and  he  went  in.  He  heard 
that  Christ  had  come  to  save  sinners.  He  believed  Him  ;  he 
took  Him  at  his  word ;  and,  in  reporting  the  matter,  he  said  he 
"  came  to  Christ  without  a  character y  and  Christ  hadnt  black-balled 

himr 

My  friends,  that  is  Christ's  way.  Is  there  a  man  here  with- 
out a  character,  with  nobody  to  say  a  good  word  for  him  ?  1 
bring  you  good  news.  Call  on  the  Son  of  God,  and  He  will  heai 
you.     Call  on  Him  to-night. 

I  was  at  a  meeting  for  ministers  the  other  day.  Up  in  the 
gallery  there  was  one  solitary  woman  ;  she  sat  there  alone.  When 
the  meeting  was  over  and  I  was  passing  out,  she  came  and  said, 
'*  Mr.  Moody,  do  you  remember  me  ?  "  "  Oh,  yes,"  I  said,  "  1 
remember  you."  Where  had  I  met  her?  Mr.  Sankey  and  my- 
self were  leaving  Dundee  for  the  north  of  Scotland.  There  wa^ 
a  lady  who  had  come  from  London  and  brought  her  two  boy^ 
all  the  way  to  ejet  blessed  ;  they  must  have  been  about  eighteei; 


70  SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRlSi . 

or  nineteen  —  twins.  That  mother's  heart  was  burdened  foi 
their  salvation.  The  last  night  we  had  a  meeting  there,  one  oi 
the  sons  yielded  himself  up  to  Christ,  and  the  mother  went  back 
next  morning  with  her  two  boys,  rejoicing  that  they  had  asked 
and  found  peace  in  believing.  Some  people  may  say  that  she 
was  a  great  fanatic  for  going  all  the  way  from  London  to  Dun- 
dee with  her  boys  to  get  a  blessing.  But  last  Friday  she  says, 
"  My  boy  who  found  the  Lord  in  Dundee,  died  three  weeks 
ago."  And  as  she  pressed  my  hand  as  I  left  the  meeting,  I 
said  to  myself,  "  Was  it  not  a  good  thing  that  mother  took  her 
boy  to  Dundee  ?  "  My  friends,  let  us  be  in  earnest  about  the 
salvation  of  our  children  and  of  our  friends.  Warn  that  young 
lady.  Yes,  mother,  speak  to  that  daughter  of  yours.  Father, 
speak  to  that  child  of  yours.  Wife,  speak  to  your  unconverted 
husband ;  husband,  speak  to  your  unconverted  wife.  Do  not 
let  a  man  go  out  of  this  house  saying,  "  Nobody  cared  for  my 
soul."  I  never  saw  a  mother  burdened  for  her  children  but 
they  soon  became  anxious.  Oh,  may  there  be  many  a  sinner 
seeking  the  kingdom  of  God  with  all  their  heart  ! 

Before  I  close,  I  want  to  ask  you  once  more,  "  What  are  you 
going  to  do  ?  If  the  Lord  is  near,  won't  you  call  upon  Him  ? 
Don't  let  that  scoffing  man  next  you  keep  you  out  of  the  king- 
dom of  God.  There  is  a  scornful  look  upon  that  man's  face  , 
perhaps  he  is  making  light  of  what  I  am  saying.  Don't  mind 
him  ;  don't  look  to  him  ;  but  just  look  right  up  to  God,  and 
ask  Him  to  save  you.  Now,  every  true  friend  —  and  you  all 
have  friends  —  every  true  friend,  if  you  could  get  his  advice  to- 
night, would  tell  you  to  be  saved  now.  Ask  that  minister 
sitting  next  you, "  Had  I  better  seek  the  kingdom  of  God  to- 
night ?  "  What  does  he  tell  you  .'*  "  By  all  means,  don't  put  it 
off  another  minute."  Ask  that  godly  praying  mother,  by  your 
side,  "  Is  it  best  to  seek  the  kingdom  of  God  to-night  ?  "  Does 
she  say.  Put  it  off  one  week,  or  put  it  off  one  month  ?  Do  you 
think  that  mother  would  say  that  ?  There  is  not  a  Christian 
mother  in  this  hall  who  would  say  it.  I  doubt  if  there  is  an 
unconverted  mother  even  here  whose  advice  would  be  to  pui 


SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST.  71 

off  becoming  a  Christian.  Ask  that  praying  sister  of  yours,  ask 
that  praying  brother,  ask  any  friend  you  have  here  —  if  you  are 
sitting  near  one  —  whether  it  is  not  the  very  best  thing  you  can 
do.  And  then  cry  up  to  heaven  and  ask  Him  who  is  sitting  at 
the  right  hand  of  God,  and  who  loves  you  more  than  your  father 
or  your  mother,  or  anyone  on  earth  —  who  loves  you  so  much 
that  lie  gave  Himself  for  you  ;  ask  Him  what  He  will  have  you 
do,  and  hear  his  voice  from  the  throne,  '"  Seek  ye  first  the  king- 
dom of  God."  And  then  shout  down  to  the  infernal  regions, 
and  ask  those  down  there,  and  what  will  they  say  ?  "  Send 
some  one  to  my  father's  house,  for  I  have  five  brethren,  that  he 
may  testify  unto  them,  lest  they  also  come  into  this  place." 
Heaven,  earth,  and  hell  unite  in  this  one  thing,  "  Seek  first  the 
kingdom  of  God."  Don't  put  it  off.  Call  upon  Him  while  He 
is  near.  And  if  you  call  upon  Him  in  real  earnest  He  will 
hear  that  call. 

You  may  call  too  late.  I  have  no  doubt  that  those  who 
would  not  pray  when  the  ark  was  building  prayed  when  the 
flood  came,  but  their  prayer  was  not  answered.  I  have  no 
doubt  that  when  Lot  went  out  of  Sodom,  Sodom  cried  to  God, 
but  it  was  too  late,  and  God's  judgment  swept  them  from  the 
earth.  My  friends,  it  is  not  too  late  now,  but  it  may  be  at 
twelve  o'clock  to-night.  I  cannot  find  any  place  in  this  Bible 
where  I  can  say  you  may  call  to-morrow.  I  am  not  justified  in 
saying  that.  "  Behold,  now  is  the  accepted  time ;  now  is  the  day  of 
salvation. "  Those  men  of  Jerusalem,  what  a  golden  opportunity 
they  had,  with  Christ  in  their  midst.  We  see  the  Son  of  God  weep- 
ing over  Jerusalem,  His  heart  bursting  with  grief  for  the  city,  as  He 
cried, "  O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem !  thou  that  stonest  the  prophets, 
how  often  would  I  have  gathered  thee  as  a  hen  gathereth  her 
brood,  but  ye  would  not."  He  could  look  down  forty  years,  and 
see  Titus  coming  with  his  army,  and  besieging  that  city.  They 
called  upon  God  then,  but  it  was  too  late,  and  eleven  hundred 
thousand  people  perished.  To-night  is  a  time  of  mercy.  It 
may  be  I  am  talking  to  some  one  to-night  whose  days  of  grace 
may  be  few,  to  some  one  who  may  be  snatched  away  very 


ya  SINNERS  SEEKING  CHRIST. 

soon.  There  may  be  some  one  here  to-night  who  may  never 
hear  another  gospel  sermon ;  some  one  who  may  be  hearing 
ihg  last  call.  My  friend,  be  wise  to  night.  Make  up  your 
mind  that  you  will  seek  the  kingdom  of  God  now.  "  Behold, 
now  is  the  accepted  time;  behold,  now  is  the  day  of  salvation." 
Christ  is  inviting  you  to  come  —  "Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that 
labour  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  Oh, 
may  we  all  find  rest  in  Christ  to-night !  Do  not  let  anything 
divert  your  minds,  but  this  night,  this  hour,  make  up  your  mind 
that  you  will  not  leave  this  hall  until  the  great  question  of  eter- 
nity has  been  settled. 


WHAT  THINK  YE  OF  CHRIST? 
Matt.  xxii.  42. 


I  SUPPOSE  there  is  no  one  here  who  has  not  thought  more  01 
less,  about  Christ.  You  have  heard  about  Him,  and  read  abouc 
Him,  and  heard  men  preach  about  Him.  For  eighteen  hundred 
years,  men  have  been  talking  about  Him,  and  thinking  about 
Him  ;  and  some  have  their  minds  made  up  about  who  He  is, 
and  doubtless  some  have  not.  And  although  all  these  years 
have  rolled  away,  this  question  comes  up,  addressed  to  each 
of  us,  to-day,  "  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?  " 

I  do  not  know  why  it  should  not  be  thought  a  proper  ques- 
tion for  one  man  to  put  to  another.  If  I  were  to  ask  you  what 
you  think  of  any  of  your  prominent  men,  you  would  already 
have  your  mind  made  up  about  him.  If  I  were  to  ask  you 
what  you  think  of  our  President  you  would  speak  right  out, 
and  tell  me  your  opinion  in  a  minute.  If  I  were  to  ask  about 
your  governor,  you  would  tell  me  freely  what  you  had  tor 
OT  against  him.  And  why  should  not  people  make  up  their 
minds  about  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  take  their  stand  for  or 
against  Him  ?  If  you  think  well  of  Him,  why  not  speak  well 
of- Him,  and  range  yourselves  on  His  side?  And  if  you  think 
ill  of  Him,  and  believe  Him  to  be  an  impostor,  and  that  He 
did  not  die  to  save  the  world,  why  not  lift  up  your  voice,  and 
say  you  are  against  Him.?  It  would  be  a  happy  day  for 
Christianity  if  men  would  just  take  sides  —  if  we  could 
know  positively  who  was  really  for  Him,  and  who  was  against 
Him. 


74  iVHA  T  THINK  YE  OF  CHRIST  t 

It  is  of  very  little  importance  what  the  world  thinks  of  any 
one  else.  All  the  great  ones,  all  the  noble  people  of  this 
world  must  soon  be  gone.  Yes;  it  matters  little  compara- 
tively what  we  think  of  them.  Their  lives  can  only  interest  a 
few ;  but  every  living  soul  on  the  face  of  the  earth  is  concerned 
with  this  Man.  The  question  for  the  world  is,  "  What  think  ye 
of  Christ  ?  "  I  do  not  ask  you  what  you  think  of  the  Epis  - 
copal  Church,  or  of  the  Presbyterians,  or  the  Baptists,  or  the 
Roman  Catholics ;  I  do  not  ask  you  what  you  think  of  this 
minister  or  that,  of  this  doctrine  or  that ;  but  I  want  to  ask  you 
what  you  think  of  the  living  person  of  Christ  ? 

I  should  like  to  ask.  Was  He  really  the  Son  of  God  —  the 
great  God-man  }  Did  He  leave  heaven  and  come  down  to  this 
world  for  a  purpose  ?  Was  it  really  to  seek  and  to  save  ^  ] 
should  like  to  begin  with  the  manger,  and  follow  Him  up 
through  the  thirty-three  years  He  was  here  upon  earth.  I 
should  ask  you  what  you  think  of  His  coming  into  this  world, 
and  being  bom  in  a  manger  when  it  might  have  been  a  palace ; 
why  He  left  the  griandeur  and  the  glory  of  heaven,  and  the  royal 
retinue  of  angels  ;  why  He  passed  by  palaces  and  crowns  and 
dominion,  and  came  down  here  alone } 

I  should  like  to  ask  what  you  think  of  Him  as  a  tecuher  f  He 
spake  as  never  man  spake.  I  should  like  to  take  Him  up  as  a 
preacher.  I  should  like  to  bring  you  to  that  mountain  side, 
that  we  might  listen  to  the  words  as  they  fall  from  His  gentle 
lips.  Talk  about  the  preachers  of  the  present  day  !  I  would 
rather  a  thousand  times  be  five  minutes  at  the  feet  of  Christ, 
than  listen  a  lifetime  to  all  the  wise  men  in  the  world.  He 
used  just  to  hang  truth  upon  anything.  Yonder  is  a  sower,  a 
fox,  a  bird,  and  He  just  gathers  the  truth  round  them,  so  that 
you  cannot  see  a  fox,  a  sower,  or  a  bird,  without  thinking  what 
Jesus  said.  Yonder  is  a  lily  of  the  valley,  you  cannot  see  it 
without  thinking  of  His  words,  "  They  toil  not,  neither  do  they 
spin."  He  makes  the  little  sparrow  chirping  in  the  air  preach 
to  us.  How  fresh  those  wonderful  sermons  are,  how  they  live 
to-day  !     How  we  love  to  tell  them  to  our  children,  how  the 


WHAT  THINK   YE  OF  CHRIST t  75 

children  love  to  hear !  "  Tell  me  a  story  about  Jesus/'  how 
often  we  hear  it ;  how  the  little  ones  love  His  sermons  !  No 
story-book  in  the  world  will  ever  interest  them  like  the  stories 
that  He  told.  And  yet  how  profound  He  was  ;  how  He  puzzled 
the  wise  men ;  how  the  scribes  and  the  Pharisees  could  never 
fathom  Him  !  Oh,  do  you  ;not  think  He  was  a  wonderful 
preacher  ? 

I  should  like  to  ask  you  what  you  think  of  Him  as  a  physi- 
cian. A  man  would  soon  have  a  reputation  as  a  doctor  if  he 
could  cure  as  Christ  did.  No  case  was  ever  brought  to  Him 
but  what  He  was  a  match  for.  He  had  but  to  speak  the  word, 
and  disease  fled  before  Him.  Here  comes  a  man  covered  with 
leprosy.  "  Lord,  if  Thou  wilt  Thou  canst  make  me  clean,"  he 
cries.  "  I  will,'*  says  the  Great  Physician,  and  in  an  instant  the 
leprosy  is  gone.  The  world  has  hospitals  for  incurable  dis- 
eases ;  but  there  were  no  incurable  diseases  with  Him. 

Now  see  Him  in  the  little  home  at  Bethany,  binding  up  the 
wounded  hearts  of  Martha  and  Mary,  and  tell  me  what  you 
think  of  Him  as  a  comforter.  He  is  a  husband  to  the  widow 
and  a  father  to  the  fatherless.  The  weary  may  find  a  resting 
place  upon  that  breast,  and  the  friendless  may  reckon  Him 
their  friend.  He  never  varies.  He  never  fails,  He  never  dies. 
His  sympathy  is  ever  fresh.  His  love  is  ever  free.  O  widow 
and  orphans,  O  Sorrowing  and  mourning,  will  you  not  thank 
God  for  Christ  the  comforter  ? 

But  these  are  not  the  points  I  wish  to  take  up.  Let  us  go 
to  those  who  knew  Christ,  and  ask  what  they  thought  of  Him. 
If  you  want  to  find  out  what  a  man  is  now-a-days,  you  inquire 
about  him. from  those  who  know  him  best.  I  do  not  wish  to 
be  partial ;  we  will  go  to  his  enemies,  and  to  his  friends.  We 
will  ask  them.  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?  We  will  ask  his 
friends  and  his  enemies.  -  If  we  only  went  to  those  who  liked 
Him,  you  would  say,  "  Oh,  he  is  so  blind  ;  he  thinks  so  much 
of  the  man  that  he  can't  see  his  faults.  You  can't  get  any 
thing  out  of  him,  unless  it  be  in  his  favour ;  it  is  a  one-sided 
aflFair  altogether."     So  we  shall  go  in  the  first  place  to  his  ene- 


76  WHAT  THINK    YE  OF  CHRIST f 

mies,  to  those  who  hated  Him,  persecuted  Him,  cursed  and 
slew  Him.  I  shall  put  you  in  the  jury-box,  and  call  upon 
them  to  tell  us  what  they  think  of  Him. 

First,  among  the  witnesses,  let  us  call  upon  the  Pharisees. 
We  know  how  they  hated  him.  Let  us  put  a  few  questions  to 
them.  Come,  Pharisees,  tell  us  what  you  have  against  the  Son 
of  God.  What  6.0 you  think  of  Christ?  Hear  what  they  say! 
This  man  receiveth  sinners.  What  an  argument  to  bring  against 
Him  !  Why,  it  is  the  very  thing  that  makes  us  love  Him.  It 
is  the  glory  of  the  gospel.  He  receives  sinners.  If  He  had 
not,  what  would  have  become  of  us  ?  Have  you  nothing  more 
to  bring  against  Him  than  this?  Why,  it  is  one  of  the 
greatest  compliments  that  was  ever  paid  Him.  Once  more  , 
when  He  was  hanging  on  the  tree,  you  had  this  to  say  of  Him, 
"  He  saved  others.  Himself  He  cannot  save."  And  so  He  did 
save  others,  but  He  could  not  save  Himself  and  save  us  too. 
So  He  laid  down  His  own  life  for  yours  and  mine.  Yes,  Phari- 
sees, you  have  told  the  truth  for  once  in  your  lives !  He  saved 
others.  He  died  for  others.  He  was  a  ransom  for  many  ;  so  it 
is  quite  true  what  you  think  of  Him  —  He  saved  others.  Him- 
self He  cannot  save. 

Now,  let  us  call  upon  Caiaphas.  Let  him  stand  up  here  in 
his  flowing  robes  ;  let  us  ask  him  for  his  evidence.  "  Caiaphas, 
you  were  chief  priest  when  Christ  was  tried  ;  you  were  presi- 
dent of  the  Sanhedrim  ;  you  were  in  the  council-chamber  when 
they  found  Him  guilty;  you  yourself  condemned  Him.  Tell 
as,  what  did  the  witnesses  say  ?  On  what  grounds  did  you 
judge  Him  ?     What  testimony  was  brought  against  Him  ? 

"  He  hath  spoken  blasphemy,"  says  Caiaphas.  "  He  said, 
'  Hereafter  shall  ye  see  the  Son  of  Man  sitting  on  the  right 
hand  of  power,  and  coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven.*  When  1 
heard  that,  I  found  Him  guilty  of  blasphemy ;  I  rent  my 
mantle,  and  condemned  Him  to  death."  Yes,  all  that  they 
had  against  Him  was  that  He  was  the  Son  of  God  ;  and  they 
ilew  Him  for  the  promise  of  His  coming  for  His  bride. 


WHAT  THINK  YE  OF  CHRIST?  77 

Now,  let  us  summon  Pilate.  Let  him  enter  the  nitness-box. 
t'^late,  this  man  was  brought  before  you ;  you  examined  Him  ; 
you  talked  with  Him  face  to  face,  ivhai  think  ye  of  Christy  *'  I 
find  no  fault  in  Him,"  says  Pilate.  "  He  said  He  was  the  King 
of  the  Jews  "  (just  as  he  wrote  it  over  the  cross) ;  "  but  I  find 
no  fault  in  Him."  Such  is  the  testimony  of  the  man  who 
examined  Him !  And,  as  he  stands  there,  the  centre  of  a 
Jewish  mob,  there  comes  along  a  man,  elbowing  his  way,  in 
haste.  He  rushes  up  to  Pilate  and,  thrusting  out  his  hand, 
gives  him  a  message.  He  tears  it  open ;  his  face  turns  pale  as 
he  reads  — "  Have  thou  nothing  to  do  with  this  just  man,  for  I 
have  suffered  many  things  this  day  in  a  dream  because  of 
Him."  It  is  from  Pilate's  wife  —  her  testimony  to  Christ. 
V^ou  want  to  know  what  His  enemies  thought  of  Him }  Vou 
want  to  know  what  a  heathen  thought }  Well,  here  it  is,  "  no 
fault  in  Plim ;"  and  the  wife  of  a  heathen,  "  this  just  man  !  " 

And  now,  look  —  in  comes  Judas.  He  ought  to  make  a  good 
witness.  Let  us  address  him.  "Come,  tell  us,  Judas,  what 
think  ye  of  Christ.  You  knew  the  Master  well;  you  sold  Him 
for  thirty  pieces  of  silver ;  you  betrayed  Him  with  a  kiss ;  you 
saw  Him  perform  those  miracles ;  you  were  with  Him  in  Jeru- 
salem. In  Bethany,  when  He  summoned  up  Lazarus,  you 
were  there.  What  think  ye  of  Him  }  "  I  can  see  him  as  he 
comes  into  the  presence  of  the  chief  priests  ;  I  can  hear  the 
money  ring  as  he  dashes  it  upon  the  table  — ''  I  have  betrayea 
innocent  blood !  "  Here  is  the  man  who  betrayed  Him,  and  this 
is  what  he  thinks  of  Him  !  Yes,  my  friends,  God  has  made 
every  man  who  had  anything  to  do  with  the  death  of  his  Son 
put  their  testimony  on  record  that  He  was  an  innocent  Man. 
Let  us  take  the  Centurion,  who  was  present  at  the  execu- 
tion. He  had  charge  of  the  Roman  soldiers.  He  had  told 
them  to  make  Him  carry  his  cross ;  he  had  given  orders  for 
the  nails  to  be  driven  into  His  feet  and  hands,  for  the  spear  to 
be  thrust  in  Plis  side.  Let  the  Centurion  come  forward.  "Cen- 
turion, you  had  charge  of  the  executioners;  you  saw  that  the 
order  for  His  death  was  carried  out ;  you  saw  Him  die ;  yor 


78  WHAT  THINK  YE  OF  CHRIST t 

heard  Him  speak  upon  the  cross.  Tell  us,  what  think  ye  of 
Christ  7  "  Hark  !  Look  at  him  ;  he  is  smiting  his  breast  as  he 
cries,  "  Truly,  this  was  the  Son  of  God!  " 

I  might  go  to  the  thief  upon  the  cross,  and  ask  what  he 
thought  of  Him.  At  first  he  railed  upon  Him  and  reviled 
Him.  But  then  he  thought  better  of  it.  "  This  man  hath 
done  nothing  amiss,"  he  says.  I  might  go  further.  I  might 
summon  the  very  devils  themselves  and  ask  them  for  their  tes- 
timony. Have  they  anything  to  say  of  Him  ?  Why,  the  very 
devils  called  Him  the  Son  of  God !  In  Mark  we  have  the 
unclean  spirit  crying,  "  Jesus,  Thou  Son  of  the  most  High 
God."  Men  say.  Oh,  I  believe  Christ  to  be  the  Son  of  God, 
and  because  I  believe  it  intellectually,  I  shall  be  saved.  I  tell 
you  the  devils  did  that.  And  they  did  more  than  that,  they 
trembled. 

Let  us  bring  in  His  friends.  We  want  you  to  hear  their  evi- 
dence. Let  us  call  that  prince  of  preachers.  Let  us  hear  the 
forerunner,  the  wilderness  preacher,  John.  Save  the  Master 
Himself,  none  ever  preached  like  this  man — this  man  who 
drew  all  Jerusalem  and  all  Judea  into  the  wilderness  to  hear 
him ;  this  man  who  burst  upon  the  nations  like  the  flash  of  a 
meteor.  Let  John  the  Baptist  come  with  his  leathern  girdle 
and  his  hairy  coat,  and  let  him  tell  us  what  he  thinks  of 
Christ.  His  words,  though  they  were  echoed  in  the  wilder- 
ness of  Palestine,  are  written  in  the  Book  forever, "  Behold  the 
Lamb  of  God  which  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world."  This 
is  what  John  the  Baptist  thought  of  Him.  "  I  bear  record 
that  He  is  the  Son  of  God."  No  wonder  he  drew  all  Jerusa- 
lem and  Judea  to  him,  because  he  preached  Christ.  And 
whenever  men  preach  Christ,  they  are  sure  to  have  plenty  of 
followers. 

Let  us  bring  in  Peter,  who  was  with  Him  on  the  mount  of 
transfiguration,  who  was  with  Him  the  night  He  was  betrayed. 
"Come,  Peter,  tell  us  what  you  think  of  Christ.  Stand  in 
this  witness-box  and  testify  of  Him.  You  denied  Him  once. 
Vou  said,  with  a  curse,  you  did  not  know  Him.     Was  it  true, 


WHAT  THINK   YE  OF  CHRISTY  79 

Peter  ?  Don't  you  know  Him  ?  "  "  Know  Him  !  "  I  can 
imagine  Peter  saying ;  "  It  was  a  lie  I  told  them.  I  did  know 
Him."  Afterwards  I  can  hear  him  charging  home  their  guilt 
upon  these  Jerusalem  sinners.  He  calls  Him  "  both  Lord  and 
Christ."  Such  was  the  testimony  on  the  day  of  Pentecost. 
"God  hath  made  that  same  Jesus  both  Lord  and  Christ." 
And  tradition  tells  us  that  when  they  came  to  execute  Peter, 
he  felt  he  was  not  worthy  to  die  in  the  way  his  Master  died, 
and  he  requested  to  be  crucified  with  his  head  downwards. 
So  much  did  Peter  think  of  Him ! 

Now  let  us  hear  from  the  beloved  disciple  John.  He  knew 
more  about  Christ  than  any  other  man.  He  had  laid  his  head 
on  his  Sa\<iour's  bosom.  He  had  heard  the  throbbing  of  that 
loving  heart.  Look  into  his  gospel  if  you  wish  to  know  what 
he  thought  of  Him. 

Matthew  writes  of  Him  as  the  Royal  King  come  from  his 
throne.  Mark  writes  of  Him  as  the  servant,  and  Luke  as  the 
Son  of  Man.  John  takes  up  his  pen,  and  with  one  stroke,  for 
ever  settles  the  question  of  Unitarianism,  He  goes  right  back 
before  the  time  of  Adam.  "  In  the  beginning  was  the  Word, 
and  the  Word  was  with  God,  and  the  Word  was  God."  Look 
into  Revelation.  He  calls  Him  "  the  bright  and  the  Morning 
Star."  So  John  thought  well  of  Him— because  he  knew  Him  well. 

We  might  bring  in  Thomas,  the  doubting  disciple.  "  You 
doubted  Him,  Thomas  }  You  would  not  believe  He  had  risen, 
and  you  put  your  fingers  into  the  wound  in  His  side.  What 
do  you  think  of  Him?"  ''My  Lord  and  my  God!''  says 
Thomas. 

Then  go  over  to  Decapolis  and  you  will  find  Christ  has  been 
there  casting  out  devils.  Let  us  call  the  men  of  that  country 
and  ask  what  they  think  of  Him.  "  He  hath  dotie  all  things  well, ' ' 
they  say. 

But  we  have  other  witnesses  to  bring  in.  Take  the  per5ecut- 
ing  Saul,  once  one  of  the  worst  of  His  enemies.  Breathing  out 
threatenings,  he  meets  Him.  "  Saul,  Saul,  why  persecute-^! 
thou  Me  ?  "  says  Christ ;    and  He  might  have  added,  "  What 


8o  WHAT  THINK  YE  OF  CHRIST t 

have  I  done  to  you  ?     Have  I  injured  you  in  any  way  ?     Did  1 

not  come  to  bless  you  ?  .  Why  do  you  treat  Me  thus,  Saul  ?  " 
And  then  Saul  asks,  "  Who  art  Thou,  Lord  ?  "  "  I  am  Jesus  ol 
Nazareth,  whom  thou  persecutest."  You  see,  He  was  not 
ashamed  of  His  name  ;  although  He  had  been  in  heaven,  "  1 
am  /esus  of  Nazareth  "  What  a  change  did  that  one  interview 
make  to  Paul !  A  few  years  after  we  hear  him  say,  '*  I  have 
suffered  the  loss  of  all  things,  and  do  count  them  but  dross  thai 
I  may  win  Christ."     Such  a  testimony  to  the  Saviour  ! 

But  I  shall  go  still  further.  1  shall  go  away  from  earth  into 
the  other  world.  I  shall  summon  the  angels  and  ask  what  they 
think  of  Christ.  They  saw  Him  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father 
before  the  world  was.  Before  the  dawn  of  creation  ;  before  the 
morning  stars  sang  together.  He  was  there.  They  saw  Him 
leave  the  throne  and  come  down  to  the  manger.  What  a  scene 
for  them  to  witness!  Ask  these  heavenly  beings  what  they 
ihought  of  Him  then.  For  once  they  are  permitted  to  speak; 
for  once  the  silence  of  heaven  is  broken.  Listen  to  their  song 
on  the  plains  of  Bethlehem,  "  Behold,  I  bring  you  good  tidings 
of  great  joy  which  shall  be  to  all  people.  For  unto  you  is  bom 
ihis  day,  in  the  city  of  David,  a  Saviour,  which  is  Christ  the 
Lord."  He  leaves  the  throne  to  save  the  world.  Is  it  a  wonder 
the  angels  thought  well  of  Him  } 

Then  there  are  the  redeemed  saints  —  they  that  see  Him  face 
to  face.  Here  on  earth  He  was  never  known,  no  one  seemed 
really  to  be  acquainted  with  Him;  but  He  was  known  in  that 
world  where  He  had  been  from  the  foundation.  What  do  they 
think  of  Him  there  ?  If  we  could  hear  from  heaven,  we  should 
hear  a  shout  which  would  glorify  and  magnify  His  name.  We 
are  told  that  when  John  was  in  the  Spirit  on  the  Lord's-day, 
and  being  caught  up,  he  heard  a  shout  around  him,  ten  thou- 
sand times  ten  thousand,  and  thousands  and  thousands  o! 
voices,  "  Worthy  is  the  Lamb  that  was  slain  to  receive  power, 
and  riches,  and  wisdom,  and  strength,  and  honour,  and  glory, 
and  blessing  I  "  Yes,  He  is  worthy  of  all  this.  Heaven  can- 
r.ot  speak  too  well  of  II im.     Oh,  that  earth  would  take  up  the 


/  ^ 


JVIfAT  THINK  YE  OP  CHRIST  t  Si 

echo,  and  join  with  heaven  in  singing,  "Worthy  id  receive 
power,  and  riches,  and  wisdom,  and  strength,  and  honour,  and 
glory,  and  blessing !  " 

But  there  is  yet  another  witness,  a  higher  still.  Some  think 
that  the  God  of  the  Old  Testament  is  the  Christ  of  the  New. 
But  when  Jesus  came  out  of  Jordan,  baptized  by  John,  there 
came  a  voice  from  heaven.  God  the  Father  spoke.  It  was 
His  testimony  to  Christ :  "  This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  1 
am  well  pleased."  Ah,  yes !  God  the  Father  thinks  well  of 
the  Son.  And  if  God  is  well  pleased  with  Him,  so  ought  we. 
If  the  sinner  and  God  are  well  pleased  with  Christ,  then  the 
sinner  and  God  can  meet.  The  moment  you  say  as  the  Father 
said,  "  I  am  well  pleased  with  Him,"  and  accept  Him,  you  are 
wedded  to  God.  Will  you  not  believe  the  testimony }  Will 
you  not  believe  this  witness,  this  last  of  all,  the  Lord  of  hosts, 
the  King  of  kings  Himself  ?  Once  more  He  repeats  it,  so  that 
all  may  know  it.  With  Peter  and  James  and  John,  on  the 
mount  of  transfiguration,  He  cries  again,  "  This  is  my  beloved 
Son;  hear  Him."  And  that  voice  went  echoing  and  re-echo- 
ing through  Palestine,  through  all  the  earth  from  sea  to  sea, 
yes,  that  voice  is  echoing  still.  Hear  Him  !     Hear  him  ! 

My  friend,  will  you  hear  Him  to-day  }  Hark  !  what  is  He 
saying  to  you  .'  "  Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that  labour  and  are 
heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest.  Take  my  yoke  upon  you 
and  learn  of  Me  ;  for  I  am  meek  and  lowly  in  heart ;  and  ye 
shall  find  rest  unto  your  souls.  For  my  yoke  is  easy,  and  my 
burden  is  light."  Will  you  not  think  well  of  such  a  Saviour  ? 
Will  you  not  believe  Him  }  Will  you  not  trust  in  Him  with 
all  your  heart  and  mind  }  Will  you  not  live  for  Him  }  If  He 
laid  down  His  life  for  us,  is  it  not  the  least  we  can  do  to  lay 
down  ours  for  Him  ?  If  He  bore  the  Cross  and  died  on  it  for 
me,  ought  I  not  to  be  willing  to  take  it  up  for  Him  .^  Oh,  have 
we  not  reason  to  think  well  of  Him.  Do  you  think  it  is  right 
and  noble  to  lift  up  your  voice  against  such  a  Saviour  t  Do 
you  think  it  is  just  to  cry,  "Crucify  Him!  crucify  Him!" 
Oh,  may  God  help  all  of  us  to  glorify  the  Father,  by  think 
ing  well  of  His  only-begotten  Son. 
6 


EXCUSES. 
Part  I. 


•  And  they  all  with  one  consent  began  to  make  excuse  The  firet  said 
unto  him,  I  have  bought  a  piece  of  ground,  and  I  must  needs  go  and 
•ec  it :  I  pray  thee  have  me  excused.  And  another  said,  I  have 
bought  five  yoke  of  oxen,  and  I  go  to  prove  them  :  I  pray  thee  have 
me  excused.  And  another  said,  I  have  married  a  wife,  and  therefore 
I  cannot  come."—  Luke  xiv.  i8 — 20. 

No  sooner  does  any  one  begin  to  preach  the  Gospel  than  men 
and  women  begin  "  to  make  excuse."  It  is  the  old  story. 
There  is  not  an  unsaved  person  here  but  has  got  some  excuse. 
If  I  were  to  go  to  each  of  you  and  ask  why  you  do  not  accept 
God's  invitation  to  the  Gospe!  feast,  you  would  have  an  excuse 
ready  on  the  end  of  your  tongue ;  and  if  you  had  not  one 
ready,  the  devil  would  be  there  to  help  you  to  make  one.  And 
if  they  could  be  answered  he  is  ready  to  make  new  ones.  He 
has  had  six  thousand  years*  experience,  and  he  is  very  good  at 
it ;  he  can  give  you  as  many  as  you  want. 

Do  you  know  the  origin  of  excuses  ?  You  will  find  it  away 
back  in  Eden.  When  Adam  had  sinned,  he  tried  to  excuse 
himself.  "  The  woman  whom  Thou  garest  to  be  with  me,  she 
gave  me  of  the  tree,  and  I  did  eat."  He  tried  to  lay  the  blame 
on  God,  Eve  tried  to  lay  it  on  the  serpent ;  and  down  to  the 
present  time,  men  and  women,  with  one  consent,  begin  to  make 
excuse. 

Remember  that  these  men  Luke  tells  us  about  were  not 
invited  to  a  funeral,  or  to  hear  some  dry,  stupid  lecture  or  ser- 
mon ;  they  were  not  invited  to  visit  an  hospital,  or  a  prison,  or 
a  madhouse ;  to  witness  some  terrible  scene  or  execution  — 


EXCUSES,  8S 

something  that  would  have  pained  them.  It  was  to  go  to  a 
feast.  The  Gospel  is  represented  in  the  Bible  as  a  feast.  In 
the  evening  of  this  dispensation  there  is  going  to  be  the  mar- 
riage supper  of  God's  Son.  Blessed  is  he  that  shall  be  at  the 
marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb.  If  I  know  my  own  heart,  I 
would  rather  be  torn  limb  from  limb,  or  have  my  heart  taken 
from  my  body  this  moment,  and  be  present  on  that  glorious 
day,  than  have  the  wealth  of  the  worid  rolled  at  my  feet,  and 
miss  that  wonderful  banquet  at  the  marriage  of  the  Lamb. 

Not  only  was  this  a  feast,  but  it  was  a  royal  feast.  If  you  had 
ihe  honor  of  an  invitation  from  Queen  Victoria  of  England— 
if  the  Queen  invited  you  to  some  great  banquet  got  up  in 
honour  of  her  son,  there  is  not  a  man  or  woman  here  but  would 
accept  the  invitation.  You  would  all  want  it  to  be  put  into  the 
papers,  to  show  how  you  had  been  honoured.  But  here  is 
something  worth  more  than  that.  Here  is  an  invitation  from 
the  King  of  kings,  the  Lord  of  lords,  God's  only  Son.  By  and 
by  He  will  take  His  bride  into  the  bridal  chamber.  The  mar- 
riage supper  of  the  Lamb  is  hastening  on.  He  has  gone  to  pre- 
pare new  mansions  for  His  bridf  ;  the  old  mansions  are  not 
good  enough ;  and  He  will  come  by  and  by  to  take  her  to  Him- 
self. It  is  an  invitation  to  this  feast  that  I  bring  you.  The 
invitations  are  going  out  now  to  every  comer  of  the  earth. 
There  is  not  one  here  who  is  not  invited.  For  eighteen  hun- 
dred years  God's  messengers  have  been  crossing  over  valley 
and  mountain,  over  desert  and  sea,  from  end  to  end  of  the 
earth,  inviting  men  and  women  to  the  Gospel  feast.  What  an 
honour  for  worms  of  the  dust !  When  man  prepares  a  feast, 
there  is  a  great  rush  to  see  who  will  get  the  best  place.  But 
God  prepares  His  feast,  and  the  chairs  would  all  be  empty  if 
His  disciples  did  not  go  out  and  compel  them  to  come  in. 

Then,  when  man  prepares  a  feast,  he  invites  his  friends,  those 
who  love  him;  but  God  invites  His  bitier est  enemies,  those  who 
are  in  rebellion  against  Him.  And  yet  men  make  excuse  !  ^  No 
•ooner  is  the  invitation  given  by  God  than  the  excuses  begin  to 
ra     in. 


S4  EXCUSMS. 

Did  you  ever  stop  to  think  what  would  take  place  i\  God 
should  take,  at  his  word,  every  one  who  makes  excuse/*  —  if 
He  were  to  say,  "  Yes,  if  you  want  to  be  excused  from  this  feast, 
I  will  excuse  you,"  and  with  the  next  stroke  should  sweep  them 
all  from  the  face  of  the  earth?  Supposing  every  one  in  this 
land  should  be  taken  at  their  word,  and  laid  in  the  arms  of 
death,  how  many  of  your  shops  would  be  closed  to-morrow  : 
how  many  homes  would  be  filled  with  mourning  and  tears  ? 
Not  a  bar-tender  would  be  left  to  carry  on  his  traffic ;  every  rum- 
seller  wants  to  be  excused.  He  knows  that  if  he  accepts  of 
this  invitation,  he  would  have  to  give  up  his  hellish  trade.  He 
could  not  go  on  making  all  those  fatherless  children,  and  taking 
the  bread  out  of  the  mouth  of  the  orphan  and  the  widow,  and 
be  going  on  his  way  to  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb  at  the 
same  time.  Every  bartender  and  every  drunkard  wants  to  be 
excused.  If  God  did  excuse  them  and  take  them  away  with  a 
stroke,  you  would  ^ave  no  drunkards  reeling  through  your 
streets  There  would  ^^e  no  harlots  then,  for  every  harlot  wants 
to  be  excused ;  she  ^nowi'  she  has  to  give  up  her  sins  if  she 
wants  to  be  present  at  thr  supper  of  the  Lamb.  And  your 
princely  merchants,  many  of  iSem,  would  be  gone.  They  do 
not  want  to  accept  the  invitation^  because  they  think  if  they  do 
they  cannot  make  money  so  fast.  They  are  carrying  on  some 
business  which  would  then  have  to  be  stopped,  and,  with  one 
consent,  they  begin  to  make  excuse.  But  oh,  my  friends,  it 
would  be  a  solemn  time  if  God  should  take  men  at  their  word. 
The  grass  would  soon  be  growing  in  the  streets,  and  the  living 
would  be  occupied  in  burying  the  dead. 

Now,  be  Jumest  ivith  God  to-day.  God  is  honest ;  He  means 
what  He  says.  This  is  an  honest  invitation,  and  He  wants  us 
to  be  honest.  If  you  do  not  want  to  be  at  this  supper,  why  not 
say  so  ?  Why  make  excuses  ?  They  are  nothing  but  lies.  Is 
there  anyone  of  you  can  rise  up  and  give  treasonable  excuse  — 
if  so,  tell  us  what  it  is  —  why  you  don't  accept  this  invitation  ? 
Think  for  a  minute.  What  valid  reason  can  you  give  ?  You 
have  none.     It  is  not  often  we  get  an  invitation  to  attend  a 


EXCUSES.  85 

royal  feast,  but  here  comes  one  to  be  present  at  the  marriage 
supper  of  God's  only  Son.  Is  it  not  downright  folly  for  any  one 
to  refuse  ?  Just  think  what  you  are  asking  to  be  excused  from. 
From  heaven  ;  from  the  society  of  the  pure ;  from  those  who 
have  washed  their  robes  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb.  Man  asks 
to  be  excused  from  the  mansions  which  Christ  has  prepared ; 
from  the  society  of  the  angels  ;  from  God  the  Father,  and  Christ 
the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost.  All  the  really  great  men  of  the 
worid  are  not  down  here,  they  are  in  heaven.  You  talk  of  the 
great  men  of  to-day,  but  I  tell  you  the  best  this  earth  has 
ever  had  are  there,  and  the  best  that  ever  lived  will  be  gathered 
at  that  feast.  For  six  thousand  years  they  have  been  gather- 
ing there  —  all  the  pure  of  the  earth  —  Abraham,  Isaac,  and 
Jacob.  Yes,  we  shall  sit  down  with  the  patriarchs  and  proph- 
ets, and  apostles  and  martyrs,  and  with  the  best  that  have  lived 
upon  this  earth.  I  would  rather  die  to-night  and  be  sure  of 
meeting  the  bliss  of  the  purified  in  yon  worid  of  light,  than 
live  for  centuries  with  the  wealth  of  this  world  at  my  feet,  and 
miss  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb.  I  have  missed  many 
appointments  in  my  life,  but,  by  the  grace  of  God,  I  mean  to 
make  sure  of  that  one.  Why,  the  blessed  privilege  of  sitting 
down  at  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb,  to  see  the  King  in 
his  beauty,  to  be  for  ever  with  the  Lord,  who  would  miss  it  ? 

Let  us  take  up  these  three  men  who,  "  with  one  consent, 
began  to  make  excuse." 

What  did  the  first  one  say  ?  "  I  have  bought  a  piece  o\ 
ground,  and  I  must  needs  go  and  see  it."-  Some  one  has  said. 
Why  did  he  not  look  at  the  ground  before  he  bought  it  ?  If  he 
had  been  a  good  business  man,  he  would  have  seen  his  ground 
firsts  he  couldn't  make  the  bargain  any  better  by  going  to  look 
at  it  now.  And  now  that  he  has  got  it,  he  can  go  and  look  at 
it  at  any  time  ;  the  land  could  not  run  away !  It  was  not  that 
he  had  made  a  partial  bargain  and  might  withdraw,  or  that 
some  one  might  step  in  ahead  of  him  and  get  the  ground  from 
him.  He  did  not  even  have  that  excuse.  He  had  bought  th^ 
land,  there  was  no  fear  that  he  should  lose  his  title  to  it.    Yt  t 


86  EXCUSES. 

he  must  needs  go  and  see  it.  Strange  time  to  go  and  sec 
ground  just  at  supper-time  !  On  the  face  of  it  it  was  a  down- 
right lie.  He  did  not  want  to  go  to  the  feast,  and  so  he  man- 
ufactured this  excuse  to  ease  his  conscience.  That  is  what 
people  make  excuses  for.  The  devil  gets  men  into  that  cradle 
and  rocks  them  to  sleep  in  it. 

What  did  the  second  man  say ?  "I  have  bought  five  yoke 
of  oxen,  and  I  go  to  prove  them.  I  pray  thee  have  me 
excused."  Why  not  prove  them  before  he  bought  them  ?  It 
was  no  time  to  prove  oxen  after  they  were  bought.  And  now 
that  the  bargain  was  closed  he  could  prove  them  any  time. 
Why  not  let  them  stand  in  the  stall  till  he  had  accepted  this 
invitation  ?     Don't  you  see  that  was  another  lie  ? 

The  third  man's  excuse  was  the  most  ridiculous  of  them  all. 
"  I  have  married  a  wife  and  therefore  I  cannot  come."  Why 
did  he  not  take  his  wife  along  with  him  ?  Who  likes  to  go  to  a 
feast  better  than  a  young  bride  ?  He  might  have  asked  her  to 
go  too ;  and  if  she  were  not  willing,  then  let  her  stay  at  home. 
The  fact  was,  he  did  not  want  to  go. 

Eighteen  hundred  years  have  rolled  away,  and  they  tell  us 
the  world  has  grown  wiser ;  they  say  it  has  improved  wonder- 
fully during  these  years  ;  but  tell  me,  have  men  got  any  better 
excuses  ?  Young  lady  !  can  you  give  a  better  excuse  ?  Have 
you  got  an  excuse  that  will  stand  the  light  of  eternity,  have  you 
got  an  excuse  that  will  even  satisfy  yourself?  Men  try  every 
kind  of  excuse,  but  the  man  does  not  live  who  can  give  a  good 
one.  Let  some  terrible  disease  lay  hold  of  a  man,  let  death 
come  and  look  him  in  the  face,  and  his  excuses  are  gone  in  a 
moment.  My  friends,  your  excuses  will  look  altogether  different 
when  you  come  to  stand  before  the  great  tribunal  of  your  judge. 

I  would  just  like  to  take  up  some  of  the  popular  excuses  of 
the  present  day.  There  is  one  very  common  one,  "  I  do  not 
like  this  minister  or  that  preacher."  Well,  what  has  that  to  do 
with  it  ?  What  have  you  to  do  with  the  messenger  f  Suppose 
a  boy  comes  and  gives  me  a  despatch,  some  good  news  from 
my  wife.     I  don't  turn  round  to  see  who  brings  it.     He  may 


EXCUSES.  Si 

be  black  or  white,  that  is  nothing  to  mc.  It  is  the  message  1 
care  for.  Is  it  not  the  fact  that  God  invites  you  to  a  feast  ? 
What  are  you  looking  at  the  messenger  for  ?  I  have  heard  this 
excuse  till  I  am  tired,  "  I  don't  like  this  minister  or  that  minis- 
ter, this  person  or  that  one  who  calls  himself  a  Christian." 
Never  mind  about  the  messenger.  The  question  is,  are  you 
willing  to  receive  the  message  from  God  ?  Do  you  believe  the 
Word  of  God  is  true,  and  that  God  invites  you  to  this  feast  ? 
Do  you  believe  that  the  invitation  is  to  "  every  creature  "  in 
the  world  ?  You  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  preacher  who 
brings  the  message.  If  the  message  is  from  God,  I  ask  you, 
why  not  accept  it  ?  If  you  are  going  to  wait  until  you  find 
some  perfect  man  or  woman  to  bring  you  the  invitation,  you 
will  never  accept  it.  There  was  never  but  one  perfect  Man. 
You  will  find  a  good  many  flaws  in  our  character,  a  good  many 
things  ypu  may  not  like  in  the  followers  of  Christ,  but  I  chal- 
lenge you  to  find  a  flaw  in  the  character  of  our  Master.  He 
bids  you  come.  And  any  one  who  accepts  the  invitation  He 
will  receive. 

Another  excuse.  Only  the  other  night,  a  lady  came  to  me 
in  the  inquiry-room  and  said,  "  There  are  so  many  things  in  the 
Bible  I  cannot  understand."  No  doubi  about  that.  God  says, 
the  carnal  man  cannot  understand  spiritual  things,  and  the  Bible 
is  a  spiritual  book.  How  can  the  unregenerate  heart  under- 
stand the  Bible  ?  Well,  you  say,  if  it  is  a  sealed  book,  how  am 
I  going  to  be  saved  ?  Well,  when  God  put  salvation  before  the 
world.  He  put  thai  very  plain.  The  word  of  God  may  be  dark- 
ened to  the  natural  man,  but  the  way  of  salvation  is  written  so 
plain,  that  the  little  child  of  six  years  old  can  understand  it  if 
she  will.  Take  this  passage  and  see  if  you  do  not  under- 
stand it :  —  "  The  Spirit  and  the  Bride  say,  Come ;  and  let 
him  that  heareth  say,  "  Come ;  and  let  him  that  is  athirst 
come."  Arc  not  many  of  you  thirsty?  God  says  come. 
"And  whosoever  will,  let  him  take  the  water  of  life  freely.' 
Then  you  know  what  it  is  to  take  a  gift  ?  God  puts  sal- 
ration  before  you  as  a  gift.     "  He  came  unto  His  own,  and 


88  EXCUSES. 

His  own  received  Him  not ;  but  as  many  as  received  Him,  to 
them  gave  He  power  to  become  the  sons  of  God."  You  can 
understand  that  ?  "  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  thou 
shalt  be  saved."  You  know  what  it  is  to  believe?  At  any  rate 
you  know  what  it  is  to  trusty  to  commit  your  soul  to  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  —  that  is  all.  There  are  dark  and  mysterious 
things  in  the  Bible  now,  but  when  you  begin  to  trust  Christ 
your  eyes  will  be  opened,  and  the  Bible  will  be  a  new  book  to 
you.  Many  things  that  are  dark  and  mysterious  to-day,  to- 
morrow will  have  a  new  beauty.  It  will  become  the  Book  of 
books  to  you.  To-day  Christ  may  be  a  root  out  of  a  dry  ground, 
without  form  or  comeliness  ;  but  He  will  become  to  you  the 
chiefest  among  ten  thousand,  the  altogether  lovely,  the  bright, 
and  the  morning  star,  if  you  take  Him  as  your  Saviour.  Thei. 
you  will  understand  the  Bible. 

No  book  in  the  world  has  been  so  misjudged  as  the  Bible 
Men  judge  it  without  reading  it.  Or  perhaps  they  read  a  bii 
here  and  a  bit  there,  and  then  close  it  saying,  "  It  is  so  dark 
and  mysterious  !  "  You  take  a  book  now-a-days,  and  read  it. 
Some  one  asks  you  what  you  think  about  it.  "  Well,"  you  say. 
"  I  have  dnly  read  it  through  once,  not  very  carefully,  and  1 
should  not  like  to  give  an  opinion."  Yet  people  take  up  God's 
book,  read  a  few  pages,  and  condemn  the  whole  of  it.  Of  all 
the  sceptics  and  infidels  I  have  ever  met  speaking  against  the 
Bible,  I  have  never  met  one  who  read  it  through.  There  may 
be  such  men,  but  I  have  never  met  them.  It  is  simply  an  ex- 
cuse. There  is  no  man  living  who  will  stand  up  before  God 
and  say  that  kept  him  out  of  the  kingdom.  It  is  the  devil's 
work  trying  to  make  us  believe  it  is  not  true,  and  that  it  is  dark 
and  mysterious.  The  only  way  to  overcome  the  great  enemy 
of  souls  is  by  the  written  Word  of  God.  He  knows  that,  and 
so  tries  to  make  men  disbelieve  it.  As  soon  as  a  man  is  a  true 
believer  in.  the  Word  of  God,  he  is  a  conqueror  over  Satan 
Young  man  !  the  Bible  is  true.  What  have  these  infidels  t« 
^ve  you  in  its  place  }  What  has  so  exalted  us  as  the  opei 
Bible  ?     Every  nation  that  exalteth  the  Word  of  God  is  exalted 


EXCUSES.  89 

*nd  every  nation  that  casteth  it  down  is  cast  down.  Oh,  let  ui 
cling  close  to  the  Bible.  Of  course,  we  shall  not  understand 
it  all  at  once.  But  men  are  not  to  condemn  it  on  that  account. 
Suppose  I  should  send  my  little  boy,  five  years  old,  to  school 
to-morrow  morning,  and  when  he  came  home  in  the  afternoon 
I  say  to  him,  "  Willie,  can  you  read  ?  can  you  write  ?  can  you 
spell }  Do  you  understand  all  about  algebra,  geometry,  Hebrew, 
Latin,  and  Greek  ?  "  "  Why,  papa,"  the  little  fellow  would  say, 
"how  funny  you  talk  ;  I  have  been  all  day  trying  to  learn  the 
ABC!"  Well,  suppose  I  should  reply,  "  If  you  have  not  fin- 
ished your  education,  you  need  not  go  any  more."  What 
would  you  say  ?  Why,  you  would  say,  I  had  gone  mad.  There 
would  be  just  about  as  much  reason  in  that,  as  in  the  way  that 
people  talk  about  the  Bible.  My  friends,  the  men  who  have 
studied  the  Bible  for  fifty  years  —  the  wise  men  and  the  schol- 
ars, the  great  theologians  —  have  never  got  down  to  the  depths 
of  it  yet.  There  are  truths  there  that  the  Church  of  God  has 
been  searching  out  for  the  last  eighteen  hundred  years,  but  no 
man  has  fathomed  the  depths  of  that  ever-living  stream. 

There  is  another  class  here,  who  say,  "That's  not  my  diflii- 
culty.  I  believe  the  Word  of  God.  But  if  I  could  speak  alone 
to  you,  I  would  tell  you  my  excuse.  The  fact  is,  I  love  the 
world  very  much,  and  if  I  become  a  Christian,  I  shall  have 
to  give  up  all  pleasure  and  go  through  the  world  with  a  long 
face  and  never  smile  again.  My  joy  will  be  forever  gone !  " 
Well,  I  want  to  say  here,  that  no  greater  lie  was  ever  forged 
than  that.  The  devil  started  it  away  back  in  Eden ;  but  there 
is  not  one  word  of  truth  in  it ;  it  is  a  libel  upon  Christianity. 
It  does  not  make  a  man  gloomy  to  become  a  child  of  God. 
See  !  there  is  a  man  going  to  execution.  In  a  few  moments  he 
will  be  launched  into  eternity.  But,  flashing  over  the  wires, 
comes  word  from  the  Governor  He  sends  a  reprieve.  I 
run  in  haste  to  the  man.  I  shout,  "  Good  news  !  good  news  . 
You  are  not\.o  die  !  "  Does  that  make  him  gloomy  }  No  !  no  ! 
no!  Young  men,  young  women,  old  and  young,  don't  believe 
Satan 'i  lies  any  longer.     It  is  the  want  of  Christ  that  makes 


90 


EXCUSES. 


men  gloomy.  Take  a  man  who  is  really  thirsty,  dying  for  want 
of  water,  and  you  go  and  give  him  water.  Is  that  going  to 
make  him  gloomy.?  That  is  what  Christ  is — water  to  the 
thirsty  soul.  If  a  man  is  dying  for  want  of  bread,  and  you  give 
him  bread,  is  that  to  make  him  gloomy  1  That  is  what  Christ 
is  to  the  soul  —  the  bread  of  life.  You  will  never  have  true 
pleasure  or  peace  or  joy  or  comfort  until  you  have  found  Christ. 

The  idea  that  a  man  cannot  have  peace  and  joy  in  this  world, 
if  he  is  a  Christian,  is  all  folly.  That  used  to  be  my  difficulty. 
But  I  want  to  tell  you  I  had  more  joy  and  solid  comfort  and 
peace  the  first  year  after  I  was  converted,  than  I  had  all  my 
previous  life  put  together,  and  I  never  heard  of  any  young  con- 
vert who  would  not  testify  the  same  thing. 

Another  excuse  —  how  thick  they  are  !  The  air  is  full  of 
them.  I  hear  some  one  say,  "  Well,  I  should  like  to  be  a  Chris- 
tian, but  it  is  a  very  hard  thing.  I  have  tried  it  a  good  many 
times.  I  would  not  like  to  speak  right  out,  but  that  is  just  the 
honest  truth."  I  will  tell  you  what  you  have  been  doing,  you 
have  been  trying  to  serve  God  with  the  old  carnal  mind.  You 
might  as  well  try  to  walk  to  the  moon  !  It  is  utterly  impossi- 
ble. The  Ethiopian  cannot  change  his  skin  ;  the  leopard  can- 
not change  its  spots.  It  is  impossible  to  serve  God  with  the 
old  carnal  heart ;  but  with  the  new  heart  God  will  give  you  the 
power,  and  you  will  not  then  be  talking  about  its  being  hard  to 
serve  Him.  That  is  just  another  lie.  Let  us  look  at  it.  Do 
you  mean  to  say  that  God  is  a  hard  Master  ?  Do  you  say  it  is 
a  hard  thing  to  serve  God,  and  do  you  say  that  Satan  is  an  easy 
master,  and  that  it  is  easier  to  serve  him  than  God  }  Is  it  hon- 
est —  is  it  true }  God  a  hard  master !  If  I  read  my  Bible 
right,  I  read  that  th^  way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard.  Let  me 
tell  you  it  is  the  devil  who  is  the  hard  master.  Yes.  "  The 
way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard."  The  Word  of  God  cannot  be 
changed.  If  you  doubt  it,  young  man,  look  at  the  convict  in 
the  prison,  right  in  the  bloom  of  manhood,  right  in  the  prime 
of  life.  He  has  been  there  for  ten  years,  and  must  remain  for 
ten  years  more  —  twenty  years  taken  out  of  his  life,  and  when 


EXCUSES.  9^ 

he  comes  out  of  that  miserable  cell,  he  comes  out  a  branded 
felon  !  Do  you  think  that  man  will  tell  you  "  The  way  of  the 
transgressor  has  been  easy  ?  "  Go  ask  the  poor  drunkard,  the 
man  who  is  bound  hand  and  foot,  the  slave  of  the  infernal  cup, 
who  is  hastening  onwards  to  a  drunkard's  hell.  Ask  him  if  he 
has  found  the  way  of  the  transgressor  easy.  '^'EasyV  he  will 
cry  —  ''Easy  ?  "  ''The  way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard,  and  gets 
harder  arid  harder  cilery  day  ! ''  Go  ask  the  libertine  and  the 
worldling  ;  go  ask  the  gambler  and  blasphemer  —  with  one  voice 
they  will  tell  you,  that  the  service  has  been  hard.  Take  the 
most  faithful  follower  of  the  devil  and  put  him  upon  this  plat- 
form to-night,  and  let  us  put  questions  to  him.  The  best  way 
to  settle  this  question  is  to  find  out  by  the  testimony  of  those 
that  have  served  both  masters.  I  do  not  think  a  man  has  any 
right  to  judge  until  he  has  served  both.  If  I  heard  a  man  con- 
demn a  master,  I  should  be  very  apt  to  ask  him  if  he  had  served 
him  ;  and  if  he  had  not,  he  could  not  very  well  testify.  Now, 
if  you  have  served  two  masters  then  you  are  very  good  judges. 
I  want  to  stand  here  to-night  as  a  witness  for  Christ.  I  have 
been  in  this  school  for  twenty  years,  and  I  want  to  testify 
to-night  that  I  have  found  him  an  easy  master.  I  used  to  say, 
as  you  do,  "  It  is  a  hard  thing  to  be  a  Christian,"  and  I  thought 
it  was  ;  but  now  I  tell  you  that  the  yoke  is  easy  and  the  bur- 
den light.  And  I  am  speaking  to  many  more  to-night  who  have 
served  both  masters.  Many  of  you  have  served  Christ ;  and 
many  of  you  before  you  were  brought  into  His  fold,  served  the 
devil.  I  would  like  to  ask  you,  you  that  are  Christ's,  you  who 
have  served  Him  —  some  five,  some  ten,  some  twenty  years —  L/ 
is  Jesus  a  hard  master  ?  ('*  No  !  No  !  ")  I  thought  you  would 
say  iVi?.  I  knew  you  would.  I  never  heard  a  man  say,  "I 
have  served  Christ  for  five  years,  or  for  ten,  and  found  him  a 
hard  master."  And  now  let  me  put  you  into  the  witness-box 
again.  For  many  years  you  served  Satan,  some  of  you  are  serv- 
ing him  still,  "Do  you  not  find  him  a  hard  master."  ("Yes! 
Yes  !  ")  Oh  yes !  my  friends,  you  cannot  help  admitting  it,  you. 
knoiv  it  is  true,  the  way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard. 


9s  EXCUSES. 

Suppose  we  could  go  beyond  this  life  ;  suppose  we  could  go 
down  to  the  bottomless  pit  and  summon  up  Judas,  who  has 
Dcen  there  for  the  last  eighteen  hundred  years.  Suppose  we 
put  the  question  to  him,  "Judas,  you  betrayed  the  Son  of  God. 
sold  Him  for  thirty  pieces  of  silver.  You  have  served  the 
devil  faithfully;  have  you  found  his  service  an  easy  one?' 
What  a  wail  would  rise  from  these  lips !  Do  you  think  Judas 
found  it  easy  ?  Do  you  think  he  found  Satan  a  kind  master  ? 
See  him  throwing  down  the  thirty  pieces  of  silver  !  Why,  he 
got  so  tired  of  the  devil's  service  that  he  hanged  himself  twenty- 
four  hours  after  publicly  entering  it. 

Now  let  us  call  upon  Paul  who,  you  may  say,  took  the  place 
that  Judas  once  filled ;  let  him  come  down  from  the  hill-tops 
of  glory.  Do  you  think  he  would  say  it  was  a  hard  thing  to 
serve  God,  and  an  easy  thing  to  serve  the  devil }  "  I  served 
the  devil  well,"  he  says,  "  I  breathed  out  threatenings,  I  perse- 
cuted the  Church.  But  /*/  was  hard  for  nu  to  kick  against  tJu 
Pricksr 

And  now  let  us  see  what  God  says  about  it.  I  would  like  to 
ask  those  who  think  Him  a  hard  master,  what  they  would  do 
with  a  passage  like  this,  "  Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that  labour 
and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest.  Take  my  yoke 
upon  you  and  learn  of  Me ;  for  I  am  meek  and  lowly  in  heart, 
and  ye  shall  find  rest  unto  your  souls.  For  my  yoke  is  easy  and 
my  burden  is  light  1  "  Yes,  it  is  an  easy  thing  to  serve  any  one 
we  love.     If  you  love  a  person  how  you  delight  to  please  them 

Oh,  my  friends,  do  not  dishonour  God  by  calling  Him  a  hard 
master.  Speak  to  the  young  disciple  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  Look 
at  his  very  face.  See  how  his  eye  is  lit  up  with  a  light  from 
heaven  ;  how  the  glow  from  Calvary  is  shed  around  his  path. 
Let  him  tell  of  the  peace  and  the  joy  he  has  found  in  the  ser- 
vice of  Christ.  Let  him  tell,  till  language  fails  him,  how  the 
way  grows  lighter  and  lighter  as  he  journeys  on,  how  his  hopes 
grow  brighter  and  brighter  as  he  nears  his  eternal  home.  Oh 
yes,  there  is  a  vast  difference  in  the  yoke  of  Satan  and  the  yoke 
of  Chrijt.     The  yoke  of  the  Christian  ii  easy  and  light ;  the 


EXCUSES.  93 

foke  of  the  devil  is  heavy  and  hard.  I  beg  of  you  do  not  lis- 
ten to  Satan's  lies.  He  has  deceived  the  whole  human  race. 
Oh,  will  you  not  just  change  masters  to-night,  and  accept  of 
the  invitation  to  be  present  at  the  marriage  supper  of  the 
Lamb? 


EXCUSES. 

Part  II. 


The  next  excuse  I  want  to  take  up  is  "election."  I  meet  a 
great  many  in  the  inquiry-room  who  tell  me  ihey  are  very  anx- 
ious to  be  saved,  but  they  do  not  know  if  they  are  elected. 
"  If  I  were  only  sure  that  I  were  elected,"  they  say,  "  I  would 
soon  be  in  earnest  about  salvation.  But  then  I  don't  know  tha' 
I'm  one  of  the  elect,  so  I  have  a  very  good  excuse."  Now  1 
want  to  give  no  uncertain  sound  upon  this  point.  I  want  to 
say  that  an  unconverted  person  has  nothing  what'^ver  to  do 
with  the  doctrine  of  election.  After  you  have  become  children 
of  God,  then  we  can  talk  about  election  —  then  we  can  talk 
about  how  sweet  and  beautiful  the  doctrine  is.  But  those  who 
are  not  God's  children  have  nothing  at  all  to  do  with  it.  You 
do  not  like  any  one  to  read  your  private  letters,  do  you  ?  Well, 
the  doctrine  of  election  was  written,  in  a  private  letter,  to  the 
children  of  God.  No  wonder  the  world  puzzles  over  it.  No 
u'onder  they  cannot  understand  it.  It  was  never  meant  for 
them.  What  they  have  to  do  with  is  the  "Whosoever"  and 
the  "  Him  that  cometh,"  of  the  free  invitations  of  Christ. 

Suppose  I  am  taking  a  walk  near  this  hall  to-night,  and  say 
to  the  policeman  at  the  door,  "  Who  is  invited  to  this  meeting  ?  " 
"  Those  who  have  tickets,"  he  replies.  I  have  no  ticket,  so  it 
is  not  for  me.    I  walk  on  further,  and  come  to  another  meeting. 

*This  is  only  for  those  who  belong  to  the Society,"  I 

am  told,  so  I  know  it  is  not  for  me.     I  go  on  further,  and  come 
to  a  large  public  building  —  a  club.    "  Only  members  admitted," 


EXCUSES  95 

I  read  at  the  door.  It  is  not  for  me  either.  I  go  further  still 
and  come  to  another  building,  and  over  the  door  this  is  writ- 
ten :  "  Whosoever  will,  let  him  come  in."  Ah  !  it  is  for  me  this 
time.  Whosoever  —  that  means  me  —  and  in  I  go.  My  friends, 
God  puts  it  just  like  that.  All  are  invited  to  come  to  Christ. 
What  have  you  to  do  with  Paul's  epistle  about  election  }  Why, 
you  have  nothing  to  do  with  it  —  not  till  you  become  a  Christ- 
ian. You  have  no  business  with  the  private  letters  of  other 
people,  and  the  "  whosoever  "  comes  before  election.  If  you 
learn  to  read,  you  commence  with  the  alphabet,  don't  you  ? 
You  don't  learn  to  read  all  at  once.  And  if  you  come  to  Christ 
you  must  come  in  God's  way  ;  and  then  you  can  talk  about 
how  you  came. 

Yes,  but,  you  say,  there  is  another  side  to  that.  Christ  said, 
"  No  man  can  come  to  Me  except  the  Father,  which  hath  sent 
Me,  draw  him."  Well,  I  say  Christ  is  drawing  men.  "  I,  if  1 
be  lifted  up,  will  draw  all  men  unto  Me."  He  is  drawing  men, 
but  they  will  not  come.  God  was  in  Christ  reconciling  the 
world  unto  Himself,  and  drawing  men  unto  Him.  That  draw- 
ing is  going  on  now,  but  many  a  heart  is  fighting  against  the 
strivings  of  the  Spirit.  God  is  drawing  men  heavenward,  and 
the  devil  is  drawing  them  hellward. 

Supposing  a  man,  wishing  to  go  to  Boston,  should  say,  "  I 
don't  know  if  God  has  decreed  it.  If  I  am  to  be  there,  I  will 
be  there.  Anyhow,  it  is  no  use  my  taking  the  train.  What  is 
the  use  of  my  paying  the  fare  and  taking  trouble  about  it  ?  If 
I  am  elected  to  get  there,  I  will  get  there  somehow."  Who 
would  use  such  language  as  that }  Or  suppose  a  farmer  were 
to  say,  "I  am  not  going  to  plant;  if  God  has  decreed  that  I 
am  to  have  a  crop,  I  shall  have  it,  I  am  not  going  to  trouble 
myself  tilling  the  ground  or  working  hard  ;  if  God  has  decreed 
that  I  will  have  a  good  harvest,  why,  I  shall  have  it  without  any 
tilling."  Or  suppose  you  are  sick,  and  do  not  send  for  the 
doctor.  Suppose  you  say,  '*  If  God  has  decreed  it,  I  shall  get 
well,"  so  you  refuse  to  take  the  medicines.  Y'^n  say,  "  There 
is  no  use  in  it ;  if  God  has  decreed  that  I  am  to  get  well,  I  will 


96  EXCUSES. 

get  well  without  it."  Whoever  talks  in  that  way?  Yet  a  good 
many  people  carry  out  that  very  doctrine  with  regard  to  spir- 
itual things. 

I  have  an  idea  that  the  Lord  Jesus  saw  how  men  were  going 
to  stumble  over  this  doctrine,  so  after  He  had  been  thirty  or 
forty  years  in  heaven,  He  came  down  and  spoke  to  John.  One 
Lord's  day  in  Patmos,  He  said  to  him,  "Write  these  things  to 
the  churches."  John  kept  on  writing.  His  pen  flew  very  fast. 
And  then  the  Lord,  when  it  was  nearly  finished,  said,  "  John, 
before  you  close  the  book,  put  this  in  :  *  The  Spirit  and  the 
Bride  say,  Come  ;  and  let  him  that  heareth  say,  Come.'  But 
there  will  be  some  that  are  deaf,  and  they  cannot  hear,  so  add, 
'  Let  him  that  is'athirst,  Come ; '  and  in  case  there  should  be 
any  that  do  not  thirst,  put  it  still  broader,  '  Whosoei'er  willy  let 
him  ^take  of  the  water  of  life  freely.'  "  What  more  can  you 
have  than  that }  And  the  Book  is  sealed^  as  it  were,  with  that. 
It  is  the  last  invitation  in  the  Bible.  "Whosoever  will,  let  him 
take  of  the  water  of  life  freely."  You  are  thirsty.  You  want 
water.  1  hold  out  this  glass  to  you,  and  say,  "Take  it."  You 
say,  "  If  I  ani  decreed  to  have  it,  I  am  not  going  to  put  myself 
to  the  trouble  of  taking  it."  Well,  you  will  never  get  it.  And 
if  you  are  ever  to  have  salvation,  you  must  reach  out  the  hand 
and  take  it.  "  I  will  take  the  cup  of  Salvation,  and  call  upor- 
the  name  of  the  Lord."  Will  you  take  it  to-night  ?  It  is  sim- 
I)le  enough  ;  it  is  a  gift.  "  The  wages  of  sin  is  death  ;  but  ihr 
^ift  of  God'is  eternal  life."  My  dear  friends,  do  not  stumble 
over  the  doctrine  of  election  any  longer.  You  will  not  be  able 
to  stand  up  before  God  and  say,  "  I  did  not  accept  the  invita- 
tion because  I  was  not  one  of  the  elect."  That  excuse  will 
Tade  away  in  his  presence.  God  invites  every  man  and  woman 
to  the  gospel  feast  when  He  writes,  "  Whosoever  will,  let  him 

take.' 

I  can  imagine  there  is  a  man  down  tliere  who  says,  "  That  is 
not  my  difficulty.  I  know  a  man  who  belongs  to  the  professing 
Church  of  Christ,  and  he  cheated  me  out  of  ten  dollars  some 
years  ago.     There  arc  hypocrites  in  the  Church,  and  I  am  no' 


EXCUSES.  91 

going  to  have  anything  to  do  with  it.     No  !  you  don't  catch  me 
going  into  company  with  hypocrites." 

Well,  I  will  find  you  two  hypocrites  in  the  world  for  evrry 
one  you  will  find  in  the  Church.  Besides,  I  am  not  asking  )  ou 
to  come  to  the  Church  —  not  but  that  I  believe  in  churches  — 
but  I  am  asking  you  to  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb. 
Come  to  Christ  first,  and  then  we  can  talk  to  you  about  the 
Church.  There  always  have  been  hypocrites  in  the  Church  und 
always  will  be.  One  of  the  twelve  apostles  turned  out  to  be  a 
hypocrite,  and  there  will  be  hypocrites  in  the  Church  to  the  end 
of  time.  But  there  will  not  be  one  hypocrite  at  this  feast,  and 
if  you  want  to  get  out  of  the  company  of  hypocrites  you  had 
better  make  haste  and  come  to  Christ.  If  you  do  not  accept 
the  invitation  you  will  have  to  spend  eternity  with  them.  Sup- 
pose every  one  here  were  a  black-hearted  hypocrite,  what  has 
that  to  do  with  you  ?  "  Follow  thou  me,"  says  Christ.  You 
are  not  to  be  looking  to  John,  or  Peter,  or  Paul,  this  man  or 
that,  but  straight  to  Christ.  You  may  find  many  flaws  in  our 
characters,  but  you  will  find  none  in  Christ's.  We  find  a  good 
many  in  ourselves,  and  you  may  too.  But  we  do  not  ask  you 
to  follow  us,  but  Christ.  There  will  be  no  hypocrites  at  the 
marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb ;  they  will  all  be  in  the  lost 
world.  And  if  you  do  not  accept  the  invitation  you  will  have 
to  spend  eternity  with  hypocrites.  So  if  you  really  object  to 
them,  you  had  better  make  sure  of  a  place  at  the  marriage  sup- 
per of  the  Lamb. 

But  there  is  a  self-righteous  Pharisee  here  who  says,  "  Well, 
I  don't  understand  all  this  talk  about  conversion ;  I'm  good 
enough  as  I  am.  My  excuse  will  stand,  if  the  others  won't. 
I  am  not  going  into  that  inquiry-room  to  talk  with  these  peo- 
ple, and  beg  them  to  pray  for  me;  I  don't  need  it."  And  he 
draws  his  filthy  rags  of  self-righteousness  about  him  and  thinks 
he  is  pure  in  the  sight  of  God  and  man.  My  friend,  the  Word 
of  God  says,  "There  is  none  righteous,  no,  not  one."  If  you 
are  found  with  your  own  garment  on,  you  will  be  cast  out  from 
thij  feast.     He  will  furnish  you  with  a  robe  of  spotless  white 

7 


98  EXCUSES. 

if  you  will  accept  it,  but  you  need  not  think  you  can  stand  in 
the  presence  of  the  King  with  these  miserable  rags  of  self- 
righteousness  about  you.  Oh,  may  the  Holy  Spirit  show  you 
how  vile  you  are  in  the  sight  of  a  holy  God  The  nearer  a 
man  gets  to  God,  the  more  he  abhors  himself.  V^ou  know  when 
a  man  is  getting  near  to  God,  he  begins  to  loathe  himself. 
Like  Job,  he  says,  "  I  abhor  myself."  Like  Isaiah,  when  he 
saw  the  holy  God,  *he  cries  out,  "Woe  is  me,  I  am  undone." 
Like  that  holy  man  Daniel,  his  comeliness  is  turned  to  corrup- 
tion.    May  God  strip  you  of  your  self-righteousness  to-day ! 

But  here  is  another  excuse.  If  the  devil  cannot  make  a  man 
believe  he  is  good  enough  without  being  saved,  then  he  will 
tell  him  he  is  so  bad  the  Lord  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  him. 
A  great  many  in  the  ihquiry-room  have  that  excuse.  "  I  would 
like  to  be  saved,"  they  say,  "but  I  am  too  bad."  That  is 
another  lie.  Why,  what  does  the  Scripture  say  ?  "  Christ  died 
for  the  ungodly."  Jesus  Christ  came  into  the  world  to  save 
sinners.  What  did  Christ  say  to  his  disciples  ?  "  Go  ye  into 
all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  ei'ery  creature."  '*  That 
repentance  and  remission  of  sins  ihould  be  preached  in  his 
name  among  alt  natiom^  beginiiing  at  JerusaUtn."  The  very 
men  whose  hands  were  dripping  with  the  blood  of  the  Son  of 
God,  had  salvation  offered  to  them !  Paul  said  he  was  the 
chief  of  sinners^  and  if  he  was  saved,  surely  there  is  hope  for 
every  man  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  If  you  are  so  bad,  you 
are  the  very  one  He  wants  to  save.  During  our  war,  I  remem- 
ber the  doctor  used  to  go  after  a  battle  to  look  at  the  wounded 
men,  and  he  would  find  out  the  most  desperate  cases  and 
attend  to  them  first.  That  is  the  way  the  great  Physician  does 
now.  He  saves  the  worst  men  He  can  get.  I  know  a  great 
many  people  who  are  anxious  to  come,  but  they  are  waiting 
until  they  grow  a  little  better.  They  think  God  will  not  take 
them  till  then. 

Now,  notice,  my  friends,  the  Lord  invites  you  to  come  just 
AS  you  arc,  and  if  you  could  make  yourself  better  you  would 
not  be  any  more  acceptable  to  Him.     Do  not  put  these  filthy 


EXCUSES.  99 

rags  of  self-righteousness  about  you.  God  will  strip  every  rag 
from  you  when  you  come  to  Him,  and  clothe  you  with  glorioui 
garments.  When  our  war  was  going  on,  we  would  sometimes 
go  to  the  recruiting  office  and  see  a  man  come  in  with  a  silk 
hat,  broadcloth  coat,  calfskin  boots  —  his  suit  might  be  worth 
$ioo ;  and  another  man  would  come  in  whose  clothes  were 
not  worth  5  dollars ;  but  they  both  had  to  strip  and  put  on  the 
uniform  of  the  country.  And  so  when  we  go  into  Christ's 
vineyard  we  must  put  on  the  livery  of  heaven  and  be  stripped 
of  every  rag.  So,  however  bad  you  are,  come  just  as  you  are, 
and  the  Lord  will  receive  you. 

I  have  read  of  an  artist  who  wanted  to  paint  a  picture  of  the 
Prodigal  Son.  He  searched  through  the  madhouses,  and  the 
poorhouses,  and  the  prisons,  to  find  a  man  wretched  enough  to 
represent  the  prodigal,  but  he  could  not  find  one.  One  day  he 
was  walking  down  the  streets  and  met  a  man  whom  he  thought 
would  do.  He  told  the  poor  beggar  he  would  pay  him  well  if 
he  came  to  his  room  and  sat  for  his  portrait.  The  beggar 
agreed,  and  the  day  was  appointed  for  him  to  come.  The  day 
came,  and  a  man  put  in  his  appearance  at  the  artist's  room. 
*'  You  made  an  appointment  with  me,"  he  said,  when  he  was 
shown  into  the  studio.  The  artist  looked  at  him,  "  I  never  saw 
you  before,"  he  said;  *' you  cannot  have  an  appointment  with 
me."  "Yes,"  he  said,*'  I  agreed  to  meet  you  to-day  at  ten 
o'clock."  "  You  must  be  mistaken  ;  it  must  have  been  some 
other  artist ;  I  was  to  see  a  beggar  here  at  this  hour."  "  Well," 
says  the  beggar,  "  I  am  he."  "  You  }  "  "  Yes."  "  Why,  what 
have  you  been  doing }  "  "  Well,  I  thought  I  would  dress 
myself  up  a  bit  before  I  got  painted."  "  Then,"  said  the  artist, 
"  I  do  not  want  you;  I  wanted  you  as  you  were  j  noWy  you  are 
no  use  to  me."  That  is  the  way  Christ  wants  every  poor  sin- 
ner, just  as  he  is.  I  think  I  can  hear  some  one  say,  "  Oh,  but 
my  heart  is  so  hard."  Well,  that  is  just  the  very  reason  you 
ought  to  come.  If  you  had  not  a  hard  heart  you  would  not 
need  a  Saviour.  Do  you  think  you  can  soften  your  heart  ? 
Can  you  brfak  your  heart.?     Did  not  God    invite    the    hard- 


loo  EXCUSES. 

hearted  ?  Did  not  Christ  come  to  seek  and  to  save  thai 
which  was  lost?  It  is  just  because  men's  hearts  are  hard 
that  they  need  a  Saviour.  So  that  is  no  excuse  at  all.  God 
invites  you,  and  you  cannot  stand  up  and  say  to  the  Great 
King  you  did  not  accept  the  invitation  because  you  had  a 
hard  heart.  He  invites  "  whosoever,"  and  you  can  come  along 
with  your  hard  heart  just  as  it  is. 

A  well  known  a  minister  was  talking  to  a  man  in  the  inquiry- 
room.  "  My  heart  is  so  hard,  it  seems  as  if  it  was  chained, 
and  I  cannot  come,"  said  the  inquirer.  The  minister  said  to 
him,  "  Come  along,  chain  and  all ;  "  and  he  just  came  to  Christ, 
hard-hearted,  chain  and  all,  and  Christ  snapped  the  fetters,  and 
set  him  free  just  there.  If  you  are  bound  hands  and  feet  by 
Satan,  it  is  the  work  of  God  to  break  the  fetters;  you  cannot 
break  them.  But,  thank  God,  He  can  snap  the  fetters  of  every 
sin-bound  soul  to-night,  and  set  each  captive  free. 

Then  comes  another  excuse.  "  I  should  like  to  come,  but 
somehow  or  other  1  do  not  know  that  I  feel  just  right."  That 
is  a  very  common  excuse, —  Feeling,  feeling,  feeling,  feeling!  I 
have  heard  that  cry  till  I  am  sick  of  it.  Suppose  a  friend  in- 
vites me  to  dinner  to-day,  and  I  say,  "  Well,  I  would  like  very 
much  to  take  dinner  with  you.  There  is  no  man  I  would  rather 
dine  with  than  yourself;  but  I  do  not  know  that  I  feel  just 
right."  "Are  you  sick?"  he  might  ask.  "  No,  I  never  felt 
better  in  my  life."  "Well,  what  do  you  mean?"  "I  don't 
know  that  I  feel  just  right.  1  do  not  know  that  I  will  be  in  a 
right  state  of  mind."  "I  do  not  understand  you,"  he  would 
say.  "  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  "  Well,  I  would  like  to  go  very 
much,  but  1  don't  feel  right."  And  that  is  the  way  men  are 
talking  now.  "1  would  like  to  go  to  heaven,  but  I  don't  know 
that  I  have  got  the  right  kind  of  feeling."  But,  my  friends,  if 
you  really  want  to,  God  invites  you,  and  that  is  all  about  it. 
My  friend  urges  me  to  come,  but  I  keep  on  saying,  "  I  do  not 
know  that  I  am  in  the  right  state  of  mind."  "  Why,"  he  would 
gay,  "  I  think  Mr.  Moody  must  have  gone  out  of  his  mind.  I 
invited  him  to  dinner,  and  instead  of  giving  me  a  plain  answer 


EXCUSES.  loi 

he  kept  talking  about  feeling  all  the  time  !  "  You  may  smile  ai 
it,  but  that  is  just  the  way  people  talk  in  the  inquiry-room  — 
hundreds  of  them.  My  friends,  does  God  invite  you?  If  He 
does,  why  don't  you  accept  the  invitation  ?  If  you  want  to 
come,  just  come  a'long,  and  don't  be  talking  about  feeling.  I  )(> 
you  think  Lazarus  had  any  feeling  when  Christ  called  him  out 
of  the  sepulchre  ? 

My  friends,  God  is  above  feeling.  Do  you  think  you  can 
control  your  feelings  7  I  am  sure  if  I  could  control  my  feel- 
ings, I  never  would  have  any  bad  feelings ;  I  would  always 
have  good  feelings.  But  bear  in  mind  Satan  may  change 
our  feelings  fifty  times  a  day,  but  he  cannot  change  the  Word 
of  God  ;  and  what  we  want  is  to  build  our  hopes  of  heaven 
upon  the  Word  of  God.  When  a  poor  sinner  is  coming 
up  out  of  the  pit,  and  just  ready  to  get  his  feet  upon  the 
Rock  of  Ages,  the  devil  sticks  out  a  plank  of  feeling,  and 
says,  "Get  on  that,"  and  when  he  puts  his  feet  on  that,  down 
he  goes  again.  Take  one  of  these  texts  —  "Verily  I  say  unto 
you,  he  that  heareth  My  word  and  believeth  on  Him  that  sent 
Me,  hath  everlasting  life,  and  shall  not  come  into  condemna- 
tion, but  is  passed  from  death  unto  life."  My  friend,  that  is  worth 
more  than  all  the  feeling  that  you  can  have  in  a  whole  lifetime. 
I  would  a  thousand  times  rather  stand  on  that  verse  than  all 
the  frames  and  feelings  I  ever  had.  I  took  my  stand  there 
twenty  years  ago.  Since  then  the  dark  waves  of  hell  have 
come  dashing  up  against  me ;  the  waves  of  persecution  have 
broken  all  around  me  ;  doubts,  fears,  and  unbelief  in  turn  have 
assailed  me ;  but  I  have  been  able  to  stand  firm  on  this  short 
word  of  God.  It  is  a  sure  footing  for  eternity.  It  was  true 
1800  years  ago,  and  it  is  true  to-night.  That  rock  is  higher 
than  my  feeling.  And  what  we  need  is  to  get  our  feet  upon 
the  rock,  and  the  Lord  will  put  a  new  song  in  our  mouths. 

But  I  hear  some  one  in  the  gallery  say,  "  He  has  not  touched 
my  case  at  all.  None  of  these  things  ever  trouble  me;  but  the 
fact  is,  /  cannot  hdirve.  I  would  like  to  come,  but  I  cannot 
believe."     Not  long  ago  a  man  said  to  me,  "  I  cannot  believe." 


I03 


EXCUSES. 


"  Whom  ?  "  I  asked.  He  stammered  and  said  again,  '*  I  cannot 
believe."  1  said  "  Whom  ?  "  "  Well,"  he  said,  *'  I  t-a«V  believe." 
**  Wliom?  "  I  asked  again.  At  last  he  said,  "  I  cannot  believe 
myself."  "Well,  you  don't  need  to.  You  do  not  need  to  put 
any  confidence  in  yourself.  The  less  you  believe  in  yourself 
the  better.  But  if  you  tell  me  you  can't  believe  God,  that  is 
another  thing  ;  and  I  would  like  to  ask  you  why  !  "  If  a  man 
says  to  me,  "  I  have  a  great  respect  for  you  ;  I  have  a  great 
admiration  for  you ;  but  I  do  not  believe  a  word  you  say,"  I 
say  to  myself,  "  I  certainly  do  not  think  much  of  your  admira- 
tion." But  that  is  the  way  a  good  many  people  talk  about  God. 
They  say,  "  I  have  a  profound  reverence  for  God  ;  the  very 
name  of  God  strikes  awe  to  my  heart ;  but  I  do  not  believe 
Him,"  Why  don't  you  be  honest  and  say  at  once  you  tp^w*/ 
believe  ?  There  is  no  real  reason  why  men  cannot  believe  God. 
I  challenge  any  infidel  on  the  face  of  the  earth  to  put  his  finger 
on  one  promise  God  has  ever  made  that  He  has  not  kept.  The 
idea  of  a  man  standing  up  in  the  afternoon  of  the  nineteenth 
century  and  saying  he  cannot  believe  God  !  My  friend  you 
have  no  reason  for  not  believing  Him.  If  you  say  you 
cannot  believe  man  there  would  be  some  reason  in  that, 
because  men  very  often  say  what  is  not  true.  But  God 
never  makes  any  mistakes.  "  Has  he  said  it  and  shall  He 
not  make  it  good  ?  "  Believe  in  God  and  say  as  Job  says  : 
"  Though  He  slay  me,  yet  will  I  trust  Him  !  "  Some  men 
talk  as  if  it  were  a  great  misfortune  that  they  do  not  believe. 
They  seem  to  look  upon  it  as  a  kind  of  infirmity,  and  think 
they  ought  to  be  sympathized  with  and  pitied.  But  bear  in 
mind  that  it  is  the  most  damning  sin  of  the  ^world.  "  When 
He,  the  Holy  Ghost  is  come,  He  will  reprove  the  world  of  sin, 
and  of  righteousness,  and  of  judgment ;  of  sin,  because  they 
believe  not  on  Me''  That  is  the  sin  of  the  world  — "  because  they 
believe  not  on  me."  That  is  the  very  root  of  sin  ;  and  the  fruit  is 
bad,  for  the  tree  is  bad.  May  God  open  our  eyes  to  see  that  He 
is  true,  and  nwiy  we  all  be  led  to  put  our  fullest  trust  in  Christ 
But  you  say,  "/<^  not  know  what  it  is  to  bditw."     That  is 


EXCUSES.  103 

another  excuse.  Well,  let  me  put  it  differently.  Suppose  1 
say  trust  Him  -^  just  take  Him  at  his  word.  Believe  that  He 
really  invites  you  —  that  He  wants  you  to  come.  If  you  do  not 
know  what  it  is  to  believe,  will  you  not  just  trust  God  ? 

But  here  is  another  one  who  says,  I  would  like  to  come  very 
much,  but  I  am  afraid  I  would  not  hold  out.''  Now,  I  have  had 
a  rule  for  a  number  of  years  that  has  been  a  great  help  to  me  — 
never  to  cross  a  mountain  until  you  come  to  it.  You  trust 
Christ  to  save  you  to-night.  The  devil  throws  a  little  straw 
across  your  path,  and  then  tries  to  magnify  it  and  makes  you 
think  it  is  a  great  mountain.  Never  mind  the  mountains  ;  trust 
Him  to-night  to  save  you.  If  He  can  save  you  to-night.  He  can 
keep  you  to-morrow.  When  you  have  sat  down  at  the  banquet 
and  had  one  good  feast  —  when  you  have  had  one  interview 
with  Christ,  you  will  not  want  to  leave  Him.  I  accepted  this 
invitation  twenty  years  ago,  and  I  have  never  wanted  to  go  back. 
I  have  not  had  to  keep  myself  all  these  years.  I  would  have 
been  back  in  twenty-four  hours  if  I  had.  But  thank  God,  we  do 
not  have  to  keep  ourselves.  The  Lord  is  my  Keeper  —  my 
Shepherd,  I  shall  not  want.  He  keeps  us.  It  takes  the  same 
grace  to  keep  us  that  it  does  to  save  us.  And  God  has  told  us 
that  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  you." 

But  some  people  are  not  at  all  afraid  of  falling  away.  They 
are  sure  that  God  is  quite  able  to  save  them,  and  quite  strong 
enough  to  keep  them.  But  when  you  ask  them  if  they  are 
Christians,  they  say,  "  Well,  you  know,  /  would  like  to  be^  but  1 
have  no  time.''  If  I  were  to  go  to  the  door  to-night,  and  take 
you  by  the  hand  and  say,  "  My  friend,  why  not  accept  of  the 
invitation  to-night.'*  "  some  of  you  would  say,  "  Please  just  ex- 
cuse me  to-night.  I  have  really  no  time.  I  have  got  some 
very  pressing  business  to  attend  to  to-morrow  morning,  and  I 
have  to  go  home  as  fast  as  possible  to  get  my  night's  rest.  You 
must  really  excuse  me."  And  the  mothers  would  say,  "  We 
have  to  run  home  and  put  the  children  to  bed ;  you  must  excuse 
us  for  this  time."  So  thousands  and  thousands  say  they  have 
no  time  to  be  religious.     But,  my  friends,  what  have  you  done 


I04  EXCUSES. 

with  all  ihc  iiiiic  ihdi  God  lij.i  given  you  ?  What  have  yonbeci 
doing  all  these  months  and  years  that  have  rolled  away  since 
He  gave  you  birth  ?  Is  it  true  you  have  no  time  ?  What  did 
you  do  with  the  365  days  of  last  year  ?  Had  you  no  time  dur- 
ing all  these  twelve  months  to  seek  the  Kingdom  of  God  ?  You 
spend  twenty  years  getting  an  education  to  enable  you  to  earn 
a  living  for  this  poor  frail  body,  so  soon  to  be  eaten  up  of 
worms.  You  S'^txid  seven  or  eight  years  in  learning  a  trade,  that 
you  may  earn  your  daily  bread;  and  yet  you  have  not  five  min- 
utes to  accept  of  this  invitation  of  Christ's  !  My  friend,  bear  in 
mind  you  have  yet  to  find  time  to  die ;  to  stand  in  the  presence 
of  the  Judge.  And  when  he  calls  you  to  stand  before  that  bar, 
will  you  dare  to  tell  Him  that  you  had  no  time  to  prepare  for 
the  marriage  supper  of  his  Son  }  You  have  no  time }  Take 
time  !  Let  everything  else  be  laid  aside  until  you  have  ac- 
cepted of  this  invitation }  Do  you  not  know  that  it  is  a  lie  ? 
If  you  have  not  time,  take  it.  ^^  Seek  first  the  Kingdom  of 
God."  Let  the  children  sit  up  a  little  late  to-night.  Let  your 
business  be  suspended  to-morrow.  Suppose  you  do  not  get  so 
much  money  to-morrow.  What  matter  it  if  you  get  Christ  ?  ' 
Better  for  a  man  to  be  sure  of  salvation  than  to  "  gain  the  whole 
world  and  lose  his  own  soul," 

But  you  say  "  I  would  like  to  become  a  Christian,  but  /  have 
a  prejudice  against  these  special  ?neetings,  and  against  Evangelists. 
and  against  a  layman  too.  If  it  was  a  regular  ministry,  and  it 
was  our  regular  minister,  I  would  accept  the  invitation."  If 
that  is  your  difficulty,  I  can  help  you  out  of  it.  You  can  just 
get  right  up,  and  go  out  of  the  hall,  and  walk  straight  over  to 
your  minister,  and  have  a  talk  with  him.  And  if  you  say  you 
don't  want  to  be  converted  in  a  special  meeting,  there  are  reg~ 
ular  meetings  in  all  the  churches  throughout  the  town,  and  your 
minister  would  be  heartily  glad  to  talk  with  you  about  your 
soul.  But  if  you  say,  "There  is  a  great  awakening  in  thih 
city,  and  I  do  not  like  to  be  converted  in  the  time  of  a 
revival,"  you  can  step  into  a  train,  and  go  to  some  town  where 
there  is  no  revival.     We  can  find  you  some   place  where  there 


EXCUSES.  io| 

is  no  revival,  and  some  church  where  there  is  not  much  of  the 
revival  spirit,  without  very  much  difficulty.  If  you  really  want 
to  go,  pray  don't  give  that  for  an  excuse.  How  wise  the  devil 
is !  When  the  church  is  cold,  and  everything  is  dead,  men 
say,  "  Oh,  well,  if  there  was  only  some  life  in  the  church  I 
might  become  a  Christian  ;  if  we  could  only  just  have  a  wave 
of  blessing  from  heaven,  it  would  be  so  easy  then."  Then 
when  the  wave  does  come  they  say,  "  Oh,  no,  we  are  afraid  of 
excitement,  and  afraid  of  these  special  meetings.  We  are 
afraid  something  will  be  done  that  won't  be  just  in  accordance 
with  our  ideas  of  propriety."  Oh,  my  friends,  do  not  listen  to 
these  subtle  lies.  Just  come  as  you  are  to  Christ,  and  accept 
the  offer  which  He  makes  you  now. 

I  wish  I  had  time  to  go  on  with  these  excuses,  but  they  arc 
as  numerous  as  the  hairs  of  my  head.  And  if  I  could  go  on, 
and  tried  to  exhaust  them  all,  the  devil  would  just  help  you  to 
make  more.  The  best  thing  you  can  do  is  to  tie  them  all  into 
one  bundle,  and  stamp  them  as  a  pack  of  lies ;  not  a  single  one 
of  them  is  true.  And  God  will  sweep  them  all  away  some  day 
if  you  do  not  do  it  now.  It  is  a  very  solemn  thought  that  God 
will  excuse  you  if  you  want  to  be  excused.  He  does  not  wish 
to  do  it,  but  He  will  do  it.  "  As  I  live,  saith  the  Lord,  I  have 
no  pleasure  in  the  death  of  the  wicked ;  but  that  the  wicked 
turn  from  his  way  and  live.  Turn  ye,  turn  ye  from  your  evil 
ways ;  for  why  will  ye  die,  O  house  of  Israel."  Look  at  the 
Jewish  nation.  They  wanted  to  be  excused  from  the  feast. 
They  despised  the  grace  of  God  and  trampled  it  under  foot, 
and  look  at  them  to-day !  Yes,  it  is  easy  enough  to  say,  "  I 
pray  Thee  have  me  excused,"  but  by-and-by  God  may  take  you 
at  your  word,  and  say,  "Yes,  I  will  excuse  you."  And  in  that 
lost  world,  while  others  who  have  accepted  the  invitation  sit, 
down  to  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb  amid  shouts  and 
hallelujahs  in  heaven,  you  will  be  crying  in  the  company  of  the 
lost,  "  The  harvest  is  past ;  the  summer  is  ended,  and  we  ju-e 
»iOt  saved." 

And  remember,  it  is  the  King  of  kings,  the  Lord  of  glory 


io6  EXCUSES. 

who  invites  you  to  this  feast.  Come  just  as  you  are,  and  accept 
the  invitation.  Let  the  plough  stand  in  the  furrow  until  you 
have  accepted  it.  Let  the  shop  be  closed  till  then  ;  let  busi- 
ness be  suspended  until  you  have  accepted  it.  Let  the  land 
rest ;  yes,  let  the  ox  stand  in  the  stall,  until  you  have  accepted 
that  invitation.  Make  sure,  whatever  you  do,  that  you  will  not 
be  missing  from  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb.  That 
sainted  mother  of  yours  will  be  there.  That  little  child  who 
died  a  few  months  ago  will  be  there.  Young  lady !  do  you 
want  to  be  excused  }  He  will  excuse  you.  Do  you  want  to 
be  excused,  young  man  }  He  will  excuse  you.  You  may  make 
light  of  it  to-night,  if  you  choose.  "  Oh  no,"  you  say, "  I  never 
do  that ;  whatever  I  have  been  guilty  of,  I  have  never  done 
that !  "  Have  you  not  7  Suppose  I  get  an  invitation  to  din- 
ner to-morrow  ;  I  take  it  and  tear  it  up ;  I  do  not  answer  it ;  1 
pay  no  attention  to  it.  Is  not  that  making  light  of  it  ?  How 
many  of  you  will  go  away  to-night  paying  no  attention  to  this 
invitation  ?  Every  one  who  goes  home  in  a  careless  spirit, 
won't  he  be  making  light  of  it.?  The  Lord  has  invited  you  to 
the  gospel  feast.  Are  you  going  to  spend  this  evening  in 
accepting  or  in  making  light  of  the  invitation }  God  does  not 
want  you  to  die  ;  He  wants  you  to  accept  this  invitation  and 
live.  If  you  have  a  good  excuse,  one  that  will  stand  the  light 
of  eternity,  hold  on  to  it.  Do  not  give  it  up  for  anything. 
Take  it  down  with  you  into  the  grave.  Hold  it  firm,  take  it  to 
the  bar  of  God,  and  tell  it  out  to  Him.  But  if  you  have  got 
one  that  won't  stand  the  test  of  eternity,  give  it  up.  If  you 
have  an  excuse  that  will  not  stand  the  piercing  eye  of  God,  I  beg 
of  you  as  a  friend,  give  it  up  to-night.  Let  it  go  to  the  four 
winds  of  heaven,  and  accept  the  invitation  to  be  at  the  mar- 
riage supper  of  the  Lamb.  Do  not  let  the  laughing,  scoffing, 
mocking  world  laugh  your  soul  into  eternal  death.  Do  as  the 
pilgrim,  whom  John  Bunyan  describes,  who  started  out  from 
the  Citv  of  Destruction,  crying,  "  Life,  life,  eternal  life  !  "  Set 
your  face  like  a  flint  towards  that  blessed  land  and  say,  "  By 
the  grace  of  God,  I  will  be  at  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb." 


EXCUSES.  107 

Supposing  we  should  write  out  here  to-night  this  excuse. 
How  would  it  sound  ?     "  To  the  King  of  Heaven.    While  sitting 

in  the Hally  city  of ,  July  — ,  1880,  /  received  a 

very  pressing  invitation  from  one  of  your  servants  to  be  present  at 
the  marriage  supper  of  your  only-begotten  Son.  I  pray  Thee 
HAVE  ME  EXCUSED."  Would  you  sigu  that,  young  man  ?  Would 
you,  mother  ?  Would  you  come  up  to  the  reporter's  table,  take 
up  a  pen  and  put  your  name  down  to  such  an  excuse  ?  You 
would  say,  "  Let  my  right  hand  forget  its  cunning,  and  my 
tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth  if  I  sign  that."  I  doubt 
if  there  is  one  here  who  would  sign  it.  Will  yor  then  pay  no 
attention  to  God's  invitation  ?  I  beg  of  you  do  not  make  light 
of  it.  It  is  a  loving  God  inviting  you  to  a  feast,  and  God  is, 
not  to  be  mocked.  Go  play  with  the  forked  lightning,  go  trifle 
with  pestilence  and  disease,  but  trifle  not  with  God. 

Just  let  me  write  out  another  answer.     "71?  the  King  of 

Heaven.      While  sitting  in  the  Hall.,  July  — ,  1880.  / 

received  a  pressing  invitation  from  one  of  your  messengers  to  be 
present  at  the  marriage  supper  of  your  ofily-begotten  So?i.  I 
hasten  to  reply.,  By  the  grace  of  God  I  will  be  preseni  ."■ 
Who  will  sign  that  .'*  Is  there  one  who  will  put  his  name  to 
it  ?  Is  there  no  one  who  will  say,  "  By  the  grace  of  God  I  will 
accept  the  invitation  now?  "  May  God  bring  you  to  a  decision 
just  now.  If  you  would  ever  see  the  kingdom  of  God,  you  must 
decide  this  question  one  way  or  the  other.  What  will  you  d^ 
with  the  •invitation.''  I  bring  it  to  you  in  the  name  of  my 
Master;  will  you  accept  or  reject  it?  Be  wise  to-night,  and 
accept  the  invitation.  Make  up  your  mind  you  will  not  g( 
away  till  the  question  of  eternity  is  settled.  May  God  bririi: 
hundreds  to  a  decision  to-night  is  the  prayer  of  my  heart. 


THE  BLOOD. 
Part  I. —  The  Old  Txstamint. 


'It  is  the  Blood  that  maketh  an  atonement  for  thi 
Soul." — Lev.  xvii.  ii. 

Every  man  should  be  able  to  give  a  reason  for  the  hope  that 
is  in  him ;  and  I  do  not  believe  the  man  lives  who  can  give  t 
reason  for  his  hope  beyond  the  grave,  who  is  a  stranger  to  the 
Blood.  I  am  often  told  that  I  make  the  plan  of  salvation  too 
easy,  and  that  it  is  folly  to  say  that  men  can  be  saved  by  trust- 
ing simply  to  the  atoning  blood  of  Christ.  Now  I  do  not  wish 
any  one  to  believe  what  I  say,  if  it  is  not  according  to  Scrip- 
ture ;  and  the  best  way  is  just  to  turn  up  the  Bible  and  see  what 
the  Word  of  God  says  about  it. 

The  first  portion  of  Scripture  I  would  call  your  attention  to 
is  from  the  very  first  book  of  the  Bible.  If  you  turn  to  Gene- 
sis iii,  21,  you  find,  "Unto  Adam  also  and  to  his  wife  did  the 
Lord  God  make  coats  of  skins,  and  clothed  them.*  In  this 
verse  we  get  the  first  glimpse  of  the  blood.  Certainly  God 
could  not  have  clothed  Adam  and  Eve  with  the  skins  of  beasts 
unless  he  had  shed  blood.  And  to  me  it  is  a  very  sweet 
thought  that  sin  was  covered  before  Adam  was  driven  out  of 
Eden  —  that  God  dealt  in  grace  with  him  before  He  dealt  in 
judgment.  It  may  be  that  this  was  a  type,  away  back  in  Eden, 
of  Christ  the  coming  One,  of  the  Sacrifice  to  be  slain ;  and 
Adam  might  have  said  to  his  wife,  "  Well,  even  though  God  has 
driven  us  out  of  Eden  He  loves  us,  and  this  coat  is  a  token  of 
His  love."    Some  one  has  said  God  put  a  lamp  of  promise  inio 


THE  BLOOD.  109 

nis  hand  before  He  drove  him  out.  "  The  seed  of  the  woman 
shall  bruise  the  head  of  the  serpent."  Did  you  ever  think  what 
1  terrible  state  of  things  it  would  be  if  man  in  his  lost  and 
ruined  state  were  allowed  to  live  for  ever  ?  It  was  from  love 
!o  Adam  that  God  drove  him  out  of  Eden,  that  he  should  not 
ive  for  ever.  God  put  the  cherubim  there  with  the  flaminp 
.word.  But  now  Christ  lias  come  and  taken  the  sword  into  his 
own  bosom,  and  opened  wide  the  gates,  so  that  man  can  come 
in  and  eat.  Adam  might  have  been  in  Eden  ten  thousand 
vears  and  then  be  led  astray  by  Satan  ;  but  now  "  our  life  is 
lid  with  Christ  in  God."  Yes,  man  is  safer  with  the  second 
Adam  out  of  Eden  than  with  the  first  Adam  in  Eden. 

Then  let  us  turn  to  Gen.  iv.  4:  "  And  Abel,  he  also  brought 
)fthe  firstlings  of  his  flock,  and  of  the  fat  thereof.  And  the 
Lord  had  respect  unto  Abel  and  to  his  offering ;  but  unto  Cain 
and  to  his  offering  he  had  not  respect.  And  Cain  was  very 
wroth  and  his  countenance  fell."  Now  here  were  two  boys 
who  were  bom  and  brought  up  outside  of  Eden.  They  were 
children  of  the  same  parents,  and  brought  up  under  precisely 
similar  circumstances  and  under  the  same  influences,  and  there 
is  no  account  of  any  difference  between  these  two  boys  until 
they  go  to  offer  sacrifice.  Abel  brings  the  blood,  and  is  ac- 
cepted ;  Cain  comes  in  his  own  way,  and  is  rejected.  Undoubt- 
edly, when  our  first  parents  fell,  God  marked  out  the  way  by 
which  man  might  come  to  Him ;  Abel  walked  in  God's  way, 
but  Cain  in  his  own.  You  may  have  wondered  why  Cain's  offer- 
ing was  not  just  as  acceptable  to  Him  as  Abel's;  but  one  took 
God's  way  and  the  other  took  his  own.  Perhaps  Cain  said  he 
could  not  bear  the  sight  of  blood,  and  took  that  which  God  had 
cursed^  and  laid  it  on  the  altar.  Perhaps  he  said  to  himself,  "  I 
shall  certainly  not  bring  a  bleeding  lamb.  I  don't  like  that 
doctrine  at  all.  Here  is  the  grain  and  the  beautiful  fruit  which 
\  have  raised  by  my  industry,  and  I'm  sure  it  looks  better  than 
blood."  And  there  are  a  great  many  Cainites  in  the  church 
to-day.  They  are  tr>'ing  to  get  into  heaven  their  own  way. 
They  bring  their  own  good  deeds  to  God.     They  prefer  what  is 


no  THE  BLOOD. 

agreeable  to  the  eye,  as  Cain  did  his  beautiful  com  and  fruit ; 
but  they  do  not  like  the  doctrine  of  the  Blood  of  the  Atone- 
ment. From  the  time  Adam  left  Eden  there  have  been  Abelites 
and  Cainites.  The  Abelites  come  by  way  of  the  blood — the 
Cainites  come  in  a  way  of  their  own.  They  wish  to  get  rid  of 
the  doctrine  of  the  blood.  But  be  assured  that  any  religion 
which  makes  light  of  the  blood  is  of  the  devil.  No  matter  how 
eloquent  a  man  is,  if  he  preaches  against  the  blood  he  is  doing 
the  devil's  work.  Do  not  listen  to  him.  Do  not  believe  him. 
If  an  angel  from  heaven  should  preach  any  other  gospel  I  would 
not  believe  it.  '*  Christ  died  for  our  sins,"  —  that  is  the  gospel 
that  Paul  preached,  and  Peter  preached,  and  that  God  has 
always  honoured  in  the  salvation  of  men's  souls. 

The  next  glimpse  we  get  of  the  blood  is  in  Gen.  viii.  20. 
"  And  Noah  builded  an  altar  unto  the  Lord  ;  and  took  of  every 
clean  beast,  and  of  every  clean  fowl,  and  offered  burnt-offerings 
on  the  altar."  We  have  passed  out  of  the  first  dispensation 
and  now  have  come  to  the  second ;  and  the  very  first  thing 
Noah  does,  is  to  put  blood  between  him  and  his  sins.  The 
second  dispensation  is  founded  upon  blood.  Thus  Noah 
walked  by  the  highway  of  the  blood ;  for  this  the  animals  were 
taken  through  the  flood;  and  all  God's  people  have  been  walk- 
ing that  way  since,  for  it  is  the  blood  that  atones  for  sin. 

Would  you  turn  to  Gen.  xxii.  13.  "And  Abraham  lifted  up 
his  eyes  and  looked,  and  behold,  behind  him  a  ram  caught  in 
a  thicket  by  his  horns.  And  Abraham,  went  and  took  the  ram 
and  offered  him  up  for  a  burnt-offering  in  the  stead  of  his  son." 
God  loved  Abraham  so  much  that  He  spared  his  son,  but  he 
so  loved  the  world  that  He  did  not  spare  his  own  Son,  but 
delivered  Him  up  for  us  all.  Now  we  are  told  that  Abraham 
saw  Christ's  day  and  was  glad.  I  do  not  know  when  he  saw  it, 
but  I  have  an  idea  that  it  was  from  this  very  place  that  God 
drew  back' the  curtain  of  time  and  showed  him  Christ  as  the 
Bearer  of  sin.  Just  look  at  that  scene.  There  is  the  altar, 
built  at  the  command  of  Jehovah.  God  had  told  him  to  take 
his  son,  his  only  son  whom  he  loved,  and  bind  and  slay  him. 


THE  BLOOD.  iii 

He  has  bound  the  boy ;  everything  is  ready,  and  now  he  takes 
the  knife  to  slay  his  son.  He  does  not  know  what  it  means,  but 
God  said  it  and  he  obeys.  I  wish  we  had  men  like  Abraham, 
now-a-days,  willing  to  obey  God  in  the  dark,  not  asking  the 
reason  why.  I  can  see  him  put  his  arms  round  his  boy  as  he 
takes  him  to  his  bosom  and  weeps  over  him.  I  can  hear  him 
telling  him  the  secret  he  had  hidden  from  him  so  long.  What 
a  scene !  What  a  struggle  it  must  have  been  !  Now  he  is 
ready  to  plunge  the  knife  into  the  heart  of  his  son.  But  hark ! 
there  comes  a  voice  from  heaven,  "  Abraham  !  Abraham ! 
spare  thy  son."  Ah !  there  was  no  voice  at  Calvary,  no  cry 
from  heaven  then,  "Spare  thy  Son."  He  gave  him  up  freely 
for  us  all,  the  Innocent  for  the  guilty,  the  Just  for  the  unjust. 
Turn  now  to  Exodus  xii. —  one  of  the  most  important  chap- 
ters in  the  Old  Testament.  At  the  thirteenth  verse  we  read, 
'*  And  the  blood  shall  be  to  you  for  a  token  upon  the  houses 
where  ye  are  ;  and  when  I  see  the  blood  I  will  pass  over  you, 
and  the  plague  shall  not  be  upon  you  to  destroy  you."  God 
did  not  say,  "  When  I  see  your  good  deeds  —  how  you  have 
prayed,  and  wept,  and  groaned,  I  will  pass  over  you,"  but 
*'  when  I  see  the  bloody  It  was  not  their  good  resolutions,  theii 
tears,  their  prayers,  their  works,  their  faith,  that  saved  those 
men  in  Egypt ;  it  was  the  blood.  What  were  they  to  do  to  be 
saved  ?  They  were  to  put  the  blood  on  the  door-posts  and 
lintel.  They  were  not  to  put  it  on  the  threshold.  God  woul^ 
not  have  them  trample  upon  the  blood.  But  that  is  what  the 
world  is  doing  to-day.  Men  say  it  is  not  the  death  of  Christ ; 
it  is  his  life.  But  God  did  not  say,  "  Take  a  white,  spotless 
lamb,  and  put  it  there  at  the  front  of  the  door,  and  when  I  see 
the  lamb  I  will  pass  over  you."  Had  an  Israelite  done  that, 
the  angel  of  death  would  have  passed  by  the  lamb  ;  would  have 
entered  that  house  ;  would  have  laid  his  cold  hand  on  the  eldest 
bom.  A  live  lamb  could  not  have  kept  death  out  that  night; 
he  would  have  fallen  a  victim  like  the  Egyptian.  Very  likely, 
when  some  of  the  lords  and  dukes  and  great  men  rode  throue^ 
Goshen,  and  saw  the  Israelites  sprinkling  their  dwellings,  they 


iia  THE  BLOOD. 

said  they  never  saw  such  foolishness.     Very  likely  they  thought 

they  were  just  spoiling  their  houses.  Every  house  had  blood 
on  it.  No  Egyptian  could  understand  it.  But  on  that  memo- 
rable night  when  death  entered  every  house  from  the  palace  of 
the  king  to  the  hovel  of  the  poor,  when  the  wail  of  sorrow  went 
up  from  that  stricken  land,  it  was  the  blood  that  kept,him  from 
the  homes  of  Goshen.  Yes,  it  is  the  blood  that  must  cover  our 
sins.  I  beg  of  you,  do  not  let  the.  world  move  you  on  this 
point.  Let  it  go  on  mocking,  and  laughing,  and  making  light 
of  the  precious  blood  of  the  Son  of  God.  It  is  our  only  ref- 
uge, our  only  hope.  W^e  cannot  cover  sin  by  any  good  deeds 
of  our  own.  It  is  a  very  common  saying,  "  If  I  were  only  as 
good  as  that  man  who  has  preached  the  gospel  for  fifty  years, 
or  that  mother  in  Israel  who  has  visited  the  sick  and  been  so 
kind  to  the  poor,  I  would  feel  safe  for  heaven."  But  I  want  to 
say  if  you  are  sheltered  behind  the  J)lood  of  the  Son  of  God, 
vou  are  as  safe  as  any  saint  that  ever  walked  this  earth.  It  is 
not  a  long  life  of  good  deeds  that  is  going  to  save  us. .  It  is 
not  our  Christian  usefulness  that  will  ever  commend  us  to  God. 
Certainly  we  must  work  for  Christ ;  certainly  it  will  be  better 
for  you  in  the  future  if  you  do.  But  that  is  not  salvation. 
Certainly  you  must  follow  Christ ;  certainly  you  must  imitate 
His  pure  and  holy  life.  1  would  go  fujjther,  and  say  it  is  an 
absolute  necessity  you  should  do  so ;  but  the  life  of  Christ  may 
be  preached  for  ever,  and  if  His  death  be  left  out,  it  will  never 
save  a  soul.  People  say  you  must  work,  work,  work,  in  order 
to  get  salvation.  Ten  thousand  times  no  !  You  get  it  as  a 
gift;  "  Whosoever  will, /^/ /«;// /ay^<r."  You  can  work  as  much 
as  you  like  after  you  have  taken  it.  "  Work  out  your  own  salva- 
tion.** Yes,  but  that  was  spoken  to  Christians,  people  who  had 
taken  it.  So  we  must  first  take  it,  and  then  we  can  work  it  out. 
We  take  salvation  as  a  gift  and  then  begin  to  work  because  we 
cannot  help  it.  All  work  done  before  that  must  go  for  nothing. 
When  the  angel  of  death  swept  through  the  land  ihatniglit, 
the  good  and  the  bad  were  destroyed  together.  Into  every 
■;ouse  where  the  blood  was  not  sprinkled,  the  destroying  angei 


THE  BLOOD.  113 

came.  But  wherever  the  blood  was  on  door-post  and  lintel 
whether  they  had  worked  much,  or  whether  they  had  worked 
none,  God  passed  them  over. 

The  little  child  in  the  humblest  tent  was  just  as  safe  as  Moses 
or  Aaron,  as  Joshua  or  Caleb,  as  safe  as  any  in  the  land.  God 
did  not  say,  "When  I  see  your  gilded  palace,  or  your  beautiful 
home ;  when  1  see  your  goodness,  your  life  of  service,  or  your 
faith,"'  but,  "  when  I  see  the  blood,  it  shall  be  a  token."  Not 
for  their  own  sakes,  but  for  Christ's,  did  He  pass  them  by  that 
night.  Some  one  has  said,  that  the  little  fly  in  Noah's  ark  was 
just  as  safe  as  the  great  elephant.  It  was  the  ark  that  saved 
taiem  both.  So  Christ  saves  the  weak  disciple  just  as  well 
as  the  strong  one. 

When  you  go  to  a  railway  station  you  find  all  classes  of  peo- 
ple wishing  to  travel.  They  have  their  tickets  and  take  their 
places  in  the  cars.  When  the  conductor  comes  to  ask  for  the 
tickets,  he  does  not  look  to  see  what  or  who  you  are.  You  may 
be  rich  or  poor,  learned  or  unlearned,  this  or  that ;  he  looks  for 
the  tickets,  and  if  you  have  your  ticket  you  pass.  The  ticket  is 
the  token.  So  if  you  are  sheltered  behind  the  blood  of  Christ, 
you  may  be  very  ignorant  or  poor  in  this  world,  but  you  are  as 
safe  as  the  wisest  or  wealthiest. 

A  great  many  people  are  wondering  why  they  are  so  weak ; 
why  they  fall  so  often  when  temptation  comes,  why  so  little 
spiritual  power  is  given  them.  I  think  you  will  find  a  lesson 
in  that  same  chapter,  in  the  nth  verse  :  "  Thus  shall  ye  eat  it ; 
with  your  loins  girded,  your  shoes  on  your  feet,  and  your  staff 
in  your  hand ;  and  ye  shall  eat  it  in  haste ;  it  is  the  Lord's 
Passover."  They  were  not  only  to  kill  the  lamb  and  take  the 
blood  and  sprinkle  it  on  the  door-posts,  but  they  were  to  eat  of 
it.  That  is  the  way  to  get  spiritual  strength.  The  reason  why 
we  are  such  sickly  Christians,  is  because  we  do  not  feed  on  the 
Lamb.  We  have  a  wilderness  journey  before  us  as  the  children 
of  Israel  had,  and  if  we  do  not  feed  upon  Christ  w^e  must  starve 
by  the  way.  We  have  not  only  to  look  to  the  blood  for  safety, 
but  we  must  feed  on  Christ  for  strength.  How  much  the  sou) 
8 


114  THE  BLOOD, 

needs  to  be  fed !  Day  by  day  our  souls  must  be  fed  with  the 
heavenly  manna.  The  Lord  has  given  Him  up  for  us ;  He  calls 
Himself  the  Bread  of  Life.  Feeding  upon  Christ  is  feeding  on 
his  Word.  There  is  no  book  that  will  feed  the  soul  but  the 
Bible.  If  I  feed  on  the  Word  of  God,  I  get  sj.  iritual  strength 
and  power.  Some  people  think  if  they  get  one  glimpseat  Chrisi 
it  is  enough.  We  must  live  by  faith  as  well  as  be  saved  by  faith. 
The  just  shall  live  by  faith.  Each  day  we  must  gather  the 
manna  afresh.  A  good  many  people  seem  to  be  living  on  stale 
manna  —  manna  that  they  got  months  or  years  ago  when  they 
were  converted.  We  should  no  more  think  of  laying  in  spirit- 
ual food  to  last  for  ten  years  than  we  should  of  bodily  food. 

In  verse  2  we  read,  "  This  month  shall  be  unto  you  the  begin- 
ning of  months.  It  shall  be  the  first  month  of  the  year  to  you." 
For  400  years  they  had  been  serving  the  king  of  the  Egyptians, 
but  God  would  not  let  them  count  those  years.  They  must 
make  a  fresh  start,  as  it  were.  So  all  the  years  that  we  spend 
in  the  service  of  the  devil  go  for  nought.  Life  never  really 
begins  until  we  have  been  sprinkled  with  the  blood  of  Christ. 
Everything  dates  from  the  blood,  and  even  the  Jew  has  to  own 
that  the  death  upon  the  cross  was  the  beginning  of  days. 

Turn  now  to  Exodus  xxix,  16  :  "And  thou  shalt  slay  the  ram, 
and  thou  shalt  take  his  blood  and  sprinkle  it  round  about  upon 
the  altar."  I  used  to  read  these  words  and  these  books  of  the 
Old  Testament,  wondering  what  they  meant.  They  were  to  take 
the  blood  and  sprinkle  it  "  round  about  upon  the  altar."  Now 
I  think  I  understand  it.  It  teaches  that  there  is  no  way  of 
approaching  God  without  coming  by  the  blood.  It  has  been 
so  in  all  ages.  Even  Aaron,  the  high  priest,  had  to  take  blood 
and  sprinkle  it  round  about  upon  the  altar,  before  he  could 
have  an  interview  with  God  —  teaching  us  the  great  lesson  that 
approach  to  God  never  has  been,  never  will  be,  never  can  be, 
except  through  the  blood  of  the  Lamb. 

We  have  the  same  thing  brought  before  us  again  in  the 
thirtieth  verse  of  the  tenth  chapter.  "And  Aaron  shall  make 
an  atonement  upon  the  horns  of  the  altar,  once  in  a  year,  with 


THE  BLOOD  115 

ihe  blood  of  the  sin-offering  of  atonements;  once  in  the  year 
shall  he  make  atonement  upon  it  throughout  your  generations ; 
it  is  most  holy  unto  the  Lord."  Atonement  means  at-one-ment ; 
the  blood  of  Christ  makes  the  sinner  and  God  at  one.  Before 
Adam  fell  God  had  bound  him  to  the  throne  with  a  golden 
chain,  which  was  broken  by  the  fall.  But  Christ  came  dowp 
and  linked  man  back  to  God  again.  At-one-me?it —  that  is  whai 
the  blood  of  Christ  does,  makes  atonement.  We  talk  about  sin; 
being  forgiven  ;  they  are  forgiven,  but  no  sin  ever  committed  ir 
this  world  was  forgiven  without  being  punished.  They  wer<; 
punished  in  Christ ;  He  made  expiation  —  "  Who  His  own  self 
bare  our  sins  in  His  own  body  on  the  tree."  Think  what  it  cost 
Christ  to  make  expiation.  Think  what  it  cost  God  when  He 
had  to  give  up  his  only-begotten  Son,  to  give  Him  up  to  die ! 

•Turn  for  a  moment  to  Leviticus  viii,  23  :  "And  he  slew  it, 
and  Moses  took  of  the  blood  of  it  and  put  it  upon  the  tip  of 
Aaron's  right  ear,  and  upon  the  thumb  of  his  right  hand,  and 
upon  the  great  toe  of  his  right  foot."  That  is  another  verse  I 
used  to  stumble  over.  What  did  it  mean  ?  blood  on  the  ear, 
blood  on  the  hand,  blood  on  the  foot  ?  I  think  I  understand 
it  now.  Blood  on  the  ear  —  without  it  man  cannot  hear  the  voice 
of  God.  No  uncircumcised  ear  can  hear  his  voice.  Men  heard 
the  voice  of  God  and  they  said  it  thundered  ;  they  did  not 
know  the  difference.  But  when  the  blood  is  applied,  men  know 
the  voice  of  God  —  we  know  that  it  is  the  voice  of  our  loving 
Father  in  heaven. 

Blood  on  the  hand —  that  a  man  may  work  for  God.  Those 
men  that  think  they  are  working  for  God,  and  yet  ignore  the 
blood,  are  deceiving  their  own  souls.  One  day  they  will  wake 
up  to  find  that  their  labour  is  in  vain.  Salvation  is  "  to  him  that 
worketh  not  but  believeth."  No  man  can  work  his  way  into  the 
kingdom  of  God.  They  said  to  Christ,  "  What  shall  we  do  that 
we  may  work  the  works  of  God  ?  "  Perhaps  these  men  had 
got  their  pockets  full  of  money,  and  were  ready  and  willing  to 
build  churches.  "  This  is  the  work  of  God,"  said  Christ,  "that 
ye  believe  on  Him  whom  He   hath  sent."     No  man  or  woman 


ii6  THE  BLOOD. 

can  do  anything  to  please  God  until  they  have  believed  on  his 
Son. 

Suppose  I  say  to  my  boy,  "  Willie,  I  want  you  to  go  out  and 
get  me  a  glass  of  water."  He  says  he  doesn't  want  to  go.  "  1 
didn't  ask  you  whether  you  wanted  to  go  or  not,  Willie  ;  I  told 
f  ou  to  go.  "  But  I  don't  want  to  go,"  he  says.  "  I  tell  you, 
you  must  go  and  get  me  a  glass  of  water."  He  does  not  like 
to  go.  But  he  knows  I  am  very  fond  of  grapes,  and  he  is  very 
fond  of  them  himself,  so  he  goes  out,  and  some  one  gives  him  a 
beautiful  cluster  of  grapes.  He  comes  in  and  says,  "  Here, 
papa,  here  is  a  beautiful  cluster  of  grapes  for  you."  "  But 
what  about  the  water }  "  ''  Won't  the  grapes  be  acceptable, 
papa.?  "  "Ko,  my  boy,  the  grapes  are  not  acceptable;  I  won't 
take  them;  I  want  you  to  get  me  a  glass  of  water."  The  little 
fellow  doesn't  want  to  get  the  water,  but  he  goes  out,  and  this 
time  some  one  gives  him  an  orange.  He  brings  it  in  and 
places  it  before  me.  "  Is  that  acceptable  .?  "  he  asks.  "  No, 
no,  no  !  "  I  say ;  "  I  want  nothing  but  water ;  you  cannot  do 
anything  to  please  me  until  you  get  the  water."  And  so,  my 
friends,  to  please  God  you  must  first  obey  Him ;  and  the  first 
thing  He  asks  us  to  do  is  to  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
"  Without  faith  it  is  impossible  to  please  Him."  He  has  given 
us  an  unspeakable  Gift  —  the  son  of  His  bosom  —  and  if  we 
reject  that  Son,  and  refuse  to  follow  Him,  do  you  think  any- 
thing else  we  can  do  can  please  Him  } 

Blood  upon  the  foot —  to  walk  with  God.  God  never  walked 
with  the  Israelites  until  the  blood  was  sprinkled  in  Goshen. 
Then  nothing  could  stand  before  them.  When  they  came  to 
the  Red  Sea,  it  fled  at  their  approach.  In  the  wilderness  He 
opened  his  hand  and  gave  them  manna  to  eat.  When  they 
came  to  Jordan  they  walked  dryshod  through  the  bed  of  the 
river,  because  the  Almighty  God  was  walking  beside  them. 
Yes,  it  was  a  blood-bought  people  that  God  brought  into 
Canaan,  the  promised  land.  And  God  will  walk  with  every 
blood-washed  sinner,  and  no  man  shall  stand  before  Him. 

I  can  imagine  some  of  you  saying,  "  I  do  not  understand  yet 


THE  BLOOD,  117 

why  God  demands  blood."  A  person  said  to  me,  "  1  hate  your 
God  ;  your  God  demands  blood.  I  don't  believe  in  such  a  God 
—  my  God  is  merciful  to  all;  I  do  not  know  your  God."  But 
if  you  will  turn  to  Lev.  xvii.  11,  you  will  find  why  God  demands 
blood.  "  For  the  life  of  the  flesh  is  in  the  blood ;  and  I  have 
given  it  to  you  upon  the  altar  to  make  an  atonement  for  your 
souls ;  for  it  is  the  blood  that  maketh  an  atonement  for  the 
soul." 

Now,  suppose  Queen  Victoria  did  not  like  any  man  to  be 
deprived  of  his  liberty,  and  threw  all  her  prisons  open,  and  was 
so  merciful  that  she  could  not  bear  any  one  to  suffer  for  guilt, 
how  Long  would  she  hold  the  sceptre  '^.  How  long  would  sht 
rule  this  empire  }  Not  twenty-four  hours.  Those  very  men 
who  cry  out  about  God  being  merciful  would  say,  "We  don't 
want  such  a  Queen."  Well,  God  is  merciful,  but  He  is  not 
going  to  take  an  unpardoned  sinner  into  heaven. 

God  demands  blood,  because  He  said  to  Adam,  "  In  the  day 
that  thou  eatest  thereof  thou  shalt  surely  die."  Then  sin  came 
into  the  world,  and  brought  death  in.  God's  word  must  be 
kept.  How  could  God  do  this  and  spare  the  sinner }  Honv 
could  God  be  just,  and  justify  the  ungodly  ?  Man  has  sinned^ 
and  man  must  die.  But  what  if  some  one  should  die  instead 
of  him  .?  His  own  life  has  been  forfeited  —  the  wages  of  sin 
is  death  —  but  what  if  some  one  should  buy  it  back  for  him, 
should  redeem  him }  What  if  one  should  come  forward  and 
lay  down  his  own  life  a  ransom  for  many  —  one  who  had  no  sins 
of  his  own  to  condemn  him  to  death  ?  Glory  to  God  in  the 
highest ;  "  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  He  gave  his  only- 
begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  Him  should  not 
perish,  but  have  everlasting  life."  Glory  to  God  in  the 
highest !  He  sent  his  Son,  born  of  a  woman,  to  take  our  nature 
and  die  in  our  stead,  tasting  death  for  every  man.  Glory  to 
God  in  the  highest !  "  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  his  Son  cleans - 
eth  us  from  all  sin."  If  you  read  your  Bibles  carefully,  you 
will  see  the  scarlet  thread  running  right  through  every  page  of 
them.     The  blood  commences  to  flow  in  Genesis,  and  runs  01. 


ii8  THE  BLOOD. 

to  Revi:lation.  That  is  what  God's  book  is  written  for.  Take 
out  the  scarlet  thread,  and  it  would  not  be  worth  carrying 
home. 

Three  times  in  this  chapter  it  is  repeated,  that  the  life  of  the 
flesh  is  in  the  blood.  And  when  God  demands  blood,  in  other 
words,  He  demands  life.  It  has  been  forfeited.  We  have  sinned, 
and  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God.  I  must  die  for  my  sins, 
or  find  some  substitute  to  die  in  my  stead.  I  cannot  get  this 
man  or  that  man  to  die  for  me,  because  they  have  sinned  them- 
selves,, and  have  to  die  for  their  own  sins.  But  Christ  was 
without  sin,  and  therefore  He  could  be  my  substitute.  Here 
comes  in  the  glorious  doctrine  of  substitution.  Christ  died  for 
our  sins,  for  mine ;  and  because  He  died  for  me,  I  love  Him. 
Because  He  died  for  me  I  will  serve  Him.  I  will  work  for  Him  ; 
I  will  give  Him  my  very  life.  He  robbed  death  of  its  sting, 
and  the  grave  of  its  victory.  Oh  !  is  it  not  the  least  we  can  do 
to  give  our  poor  lives  to  Him  .'* 

When  the  Californian  gold  fever  broke  out,  a  man  went  there, 
leaving  his  wife  in  New  England  with  his  boy.  As  soon  as  he 
got  on  and  was  successful  he  was  to  send  for  them.  It  was  a 
long  time  before  he  succeeded,  but  at  last  he  got  money  enough 
to  send  for  them.  The  wife's  heart  leaped  for  joy.  She  took 
her  boy  to  New  York,  got  on  board  a  Pacific  steamer,  and  sailed 
away  to  San  Francisco.  They  had  not  been  long  at  sea  before 
the  cry  of  "Fire  !  fire !  "  rang  through  the  ship,  and  rapidly  it 
gained  on  them.  There  was  a  powder  magazine  on  board,  and 
the  captain  knew  the  moment  the  fire  reached  the  powder, 
every  man,  woman,  and  child  must  perish.  They  got  out  the 
life -boats,  but  they  were  too  small !  In  a  minute  they  were 
overcrowded.  The  last  one  was  just  pushing  away,  when  the 
mother  pleaded  with  them  to  take  her  and  her  boy.  "  No,"  they 
said,  "  we  have  got  as  many  as  we  can  hold."  She  entreated 
them  so  earnestly,  that  at  last  they  said  they  would  take  one 
more.  Do  you  think  she  leaped  into  that  boat  and  left  her  boy 
to  die  ?  No !  She  seized  her  boy,  gave  him  one  last  hug, 
kissed  him,  and  dropped  him  over  into  the  boat.     "  My  boy," 


THE  BLOOD,  119 

•he  said,  "  if  you  live  to  see  your  father,  tell  him  that  I  died  in 
your  place."  That  is  a  faint  type  of  what  Christ  has  done  for 
as.  He  laid  down  His  life  for  us,  He  died  that  we  might  live. 
Now  will  you  not  love  Him  ?  What  would  you  say  of  that 
foung  man  if  he  should  speak  contemptuously  of  such  a 
nother  ?  She  went  down  to  a  watery  grave  to  save  her  son. 
fVell,  shall  we  speak  contemptuously  of  such  a  Saviour  ?  Oh, 
(nay  God  make  us  loyal  to  Christ !  My  friends,  you  will  need 
Him  one  day.  You  will  need  Him  when  you  come  to  cross  the 
swellings  of  Jordan,  You  will  need  Him  when  you  stand  at 
the  bar  of  God.  May  God  forbid  that  when  death  draws  nigh 
■t  fhould  find  you  making  light  of  the  precious  blood  of  Christ  1 


THE  BLOOD. 
Part  II.  —  The  New  Testament. 


•Without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remission." —  Heb.  ix,  7  y 

We  have  seen  what  the  Old  Testament  says  about  the  blooc. 
now  let  us  turn  to  the  New. 

In  I  Pet.  'i.  18,  we  read:  "Forasmuch  as  ye  know  that  yt 
were  not  redeemed  with  corruptible  things,  as  silver  and  gold, 
from  your  vain  conversation,  received  by  tradition  from  youi 
fathers,  but  with  the  precious  blood  of  Christ,  as  of  a  lamb  with- 
out blemish  and  without  spot."  Silver  and  gold  could  no' 
redeem  our  souls.  As  I  have  tried  to  show,  life  had  been  for- 
feited. Death  had  come  into  the  world  by  sin,  and  nothing 
but  blood  could  atone  for  the  soul.  Therefore,  says  Peter, 
'*you  are  not  redeemed  with  silver  and  gold."  If  gold  and  sil- 
ver could  have  redeemed  us,  do  you  not  think  that  God  would 
have  created  millions  of  worlds  full  of  gold  ?  It  would  have 
been  an  easy  matter  for  Him.  But  we  are  not  redeemed  by 
such  corruptible  things,  but  by  the  precious  blood  of  Christ. 
Redemption  means  "  buying  back ;  "  we  had  sold  ourselves  for 
nought,  and  Christ  redeemed  us  and  brought  us  back. 

A  friend  in  Ireland  once  met  a  little  Irish  boy  who  had 
caught  a  sparrow.  The  poor  little  bird  was  trembling  in  hi^ 
hand,  and  seemed  very  anxious  to  escape.  The  gentleman 
begged  the  boy  to  let  it  go,  as  the  bird  could  not  do  him  any 
good ;  but  the  boy  said  he  would  not,  for  he  had  chased  it  three 
hours  before  he  could  catch  it.     He  tried  to  reason  it  out  witb 


THE  BLOOD,  i2i 

Xtt^  boy,  but  in  vain.  At  last  he  offered  to  buy  the  bird ;  the 
boi  agreed  to  the  price,  and  it  was  paid.  Then  the  gentleman 
tooh  the  poor  little  thing  and  held  it  out  on  his  hand.  The 
boy  had  been  holding  it  very  fast,  for  the  boy  was  stronger  than 
the  bird,  just  as  Sa^in  is  stronger  than  we,  and  there  it  sat  for 
a  time  scarcely  able  to  realize  the  fact  that  it  had  got  liberty ; 
but,  in  a  little,  it  flew  away  chirping,  as  if  to  say  to  the  gentle- 
man, "Thank  you!  thank  you!  you  have  redeemed  me." 
That  is  what  redemption  is  — buying  back  and  setting  free.  So 
Christ  came  to  break  the  fetters  of  sin,  to  open  the  prison  doors 
and  set  the  sinner  free.  This  is  the  good  news,  the  Gospel  of 
Christ — "Ye  are  not  redeemed  with  corruptible  things,  as  silver 
and  gold,  but  with  the  precious  blood  of  Christ." 

"  How  can  I  be  saved  to-night,"  do  you  ask  }  Accept  of  the 
Redeemer,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  rest  on  His  finished  work. 
When  Christ  on  Calvary  said,  "  It  is  finished,"  it  was  the  shout 
Df  the  Conqueror.  He  had  come  to  redeem  the  world,  and  now 
He  had  done  it  —  done  it  without  money  !  And  His  cry  to  the 
world  comes  ringing  down  the  ages  to-day  —  "  Ho,  every  one 
^hat  thirsteth,  come  ye  to  the  waters ;  yea,  come,  buy  wine  and 
milk  without  money  and  without  priced 

A  few  years  ago,  I  was  going  away  to  preach  one  Sunday 
morning,  when  a  young  man  drove  up  in  front  of  us.  He  had 
an  aged  woman  with  him.  "  Who  is  that  young  man  ?  "  I  asked. 
"  Do  you  see  that  beautiful  meadow  }  "  said  my  friend,  "  and 
that  land  there  with  the  house  upon  it }  "  "  Yes."  "  His  fathei 
drank  that  all  up,"  he  said.  Then  he  went  on  to  tell  me  all 
about  him.  His  father  was  a  great  drunkard,  squandered  his 
property,  died,  and  left  his  wife  in  the  poor-house.  "And  that 
young  man,"  he  said,  "  is  one  of  the  finest  young  men  I  ever 
knew.  He  has  toiled  hard  and  earned  money,  and  bought  back 
the  land ;  he  has  taken  his  mother  out  of  the  poor-house,  and 
now  he  is  taking  her  to  church."  I  thought,  that  is  an  illustra- 
tion for  me.  The  first  Adam,  in  Eden,  sold  us  for  nought,  but 
the  Messiah,  the  Second  Adam,  came  and  bought  us  back  again. 
The  first  Adam  brought  us  to  the  poor-house^  as  it  were ;  the 


133  THE  BLOOD. 

Second  Adam  makes  us  kings  and  priests  unto  God.  Tf  :  is 
redemption.  We  get  in  Christ  all  that  Adam  lost,  and  lAore. 
Men  look  on  the  blood  of  Christ  with  scorn  and  contempt,  but 
the  time  is  coming  when  the  blood  of  Christ  will  be  worth  more 
than  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world.  Suppose  you  were  going 
down  to  death's  gate  to-iiight,  going  down  to  the  brink  of  the 
Jordan,  without  any  hope  in  Christ.  Suppose  you  were  a  mil- 
lionnaire,  what  would  your  millions  be  worth  then  }  The  blood 
of  Christ  would  be  worth  more  to  you  than  all  the  silver  and 
gold  of  the  world. 

The  blood  has  two  cries  :  it  cries  either  for  my  condemnation 
or  if  you  will  allow  me  to  use  a  stronger  word,  for  my  damna- 
tion ;  or  it  cries  for  my  salvation.  If  I  reject  the  blood  of 
Christ,  it  cries  out  for  my  condemnation ;  if  I  accept  it,  it  cries 
out  for  pardon  and  peace.  The  blood  of  Abel  cried  out  against 
his  brother  Cain.  So  it  was  in  the  days  of  Christ.  When 
Pilate  had  Christ  on  his  hands,  he  said  to  the  Jews,  "  WTiat  shall 
I  do  with  Him  ?  "  They  cried  out,  "  Away  with  Him  !  crucify 
Him  !  "  And  when  he  asked  which  one  he  should  release, 
Barabbas  or  Christ,  they  cried  out,  "  Barabbas  !  "  Then  when 
he  asked  again,  "  What  shall  I  then  do  with  Him .? "  a  univer- 
sal shout  went  up  from  Jerusalem,  "Let  Him  be  crucified! 
Away  with  Him!  We  do  not  want  Him."  Pilate  turned  and 
washed  his  hands,  and  said,  "  I  am  innocent  of  this  just  Man's 
blood,"  and  they  cried,  "  His  blood  be  on  us  and  on  our  chil- 
dren ;  We  shall  take  the  responsibility  of  it ;  7ve  shall  endorse  the 
act ;  you  crucify  Him,  and  let  His  blood  be  on  us  and  on  our 
children."  Would  to  God  that  there  might  be  a  cry  going  up, 
"  Let  His  blood  be  on  us  to  save,  not  to  condemn." 

Turn  now  to  Col.  i.  20  :  "  Having  made  peace  through  ihc 
blood  of  His  cross."  I  can  tell  you  there  is  no  peace  in  the 
world.  There  are  many  rich  men,  many  great  men  in  the 
world,  who  have  got  no  peace.  No  ;  I  have  never  seen  a  man 
who  knew  what  peace  was  until  he  got  it  at  Calvary. 

"  Being  justified  by  faith,  we  have  peace  with  God  through 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ"  (Romans  v.   i).     Sin  covered  —  that 


THE  BLOOD.  113 

brings  peace.  There  is  no  peace  for  the  wicked  ;  they  are  like 
the  troubled  sea  that  cannot  rest.  Calvary  is  the  place  to  find 
peace  —  peace  for  the  past  and  grace  for  the  present.  But 
there  is  something  better  still.  "  And  rejoice  in  hope  of  the 
glory  of  God."  Some  people  think  that  when  they  get  to 
Calvary  they  have  got  the  best,  but  there  is  something  better  in 
store  —  glory.  I  do  not  know  how  near  it  may  be  to  us ;  it 
may  be  that  some  of  us  will  be  ushered  very  soon  into  the  pres- 
ence of  the  King.  One  gaze  at  Him  will  be  enough  to  reward 
us  for  all  we  have  had  to  bear.  Yes,  there  is  peace  for  the 
past,  grace  for  the  present,  and  glory  for  the  future.  These 
are  three  things  that  every  child  of  God  ought  to  have.  When 
the  angels  came  bringing  the  gospel,  they  proclaimed,  "  Glory 
to  God,  peace  on  earth,  and  good  will  towards  men."  That  is 
what  the  blood  brings  —  sin  covered  and  taken  away,  peace  for 
the  past,  grace  for  the  present,  and  glory  for  the  future. 

Would  you  now  turn  to  John  xix.  34  :  "  But  one  of  the  sol- 
diers with  a  spear  pierced  his  side,  and  forthwith  came  there- 
out blood  and  water.  You  know  that  in  Zechariah  it  was  fore- 
told that  there  should  be  opened  in  the  house  of  David  a  foun- 
tain for  sin  and  for  uncleanness.  And  now  we  have  it  opened. 
The  Son  of  God  has  been  pierced  by  that  Roman  soldier's 
spear. .  It  seems  to  me  that  that  was  the  crowning  act  of  earth 
and  hell  —  the  crowning  act  of  sin.  Look  at  that  Roman  sol- 
dier as  he  pushed  his  spear  into  the  very  heart  of  the  God-man. 
What  a  hellish  deed  !  But  what  was  the  next  thing  that  took 
place  .?  Blood  covered  the  spear  !  Oh  !  thank  God,  the  blood 
covers  sin.  There  was  the  blood  covering  that  spear  —  the 
veiry  point  of  it.  The  very  crowning  act  of  sin  brought  out 
the  crowning  act  of  love  ;  the  crowning  act  of  wickedness  was 
the  crowning  act  of  grace. 

A  usurper  has  got  this  world  now ;  but  Christ  will  have  it 
soon.  The  time  of  your  redemption  draweth  nigh.  A  little 
more  suffering,  and  He  returns  to  set  up  His  kingdom  and  reign 
upon  the  earth.  He  will  rend  the  heavens,  and  His  voice  will 
be  heard  again.     He  shall  descend  from  heaven  with  a  shout. 


.24  THE  BLOOD. 

He  will  sway  His  sceptre  from  the  river  to  the  ends  of  the 
earth.  The  thorn  and  the^brier  shall  be  swept  away  and  the 
wilderness  shall  rejoice.  Let  us  rejoice  ;  we  shall  see  better 
Jays  ;  the  dreary  darkness  and  sin  that  sweep  along  our  earth 
shall  be  done  away  with.  These  dark  waves  of  death  and  hell 
shall  be  beaten  back.  Oh,  let  us  pray  to  the  Lord  to  hasten 
his  coming,  that  the  Son  of  God  may  not  tarry. 

Would  you  now  turn  to  Rom.  iii,  24  :  "  Being  justified  freely 
by  His  grace,  through  the  redemption  that  is  in  Christ  Jesus." 
What  God  does  He  does  freely,  because  He  loves  to  do  it. 
Mark  these  words,  "  Through  the  redemption  that  is  in  Christ 
Jesus."  Then  in  the  fifth  chapter,  ninth  verse,  we  read,  "  Much 
more  then,  being  now  justified  by  His  blood,  we  shall  be  saved 
from  wrath  through  Him."  The  sinner  is  justified  with  God 
by  His  matchless  grace  through  the  blood  of  His  Son.  Justified, 
that  means,  as  just  as  if  he  had  never  committed  sin.  What  a 
wonderful  thing  ;  not  one  sin  against  him  !  It  is  as  if  he  owed 
-.some  one  a  debt,  and  when  he  went  to  pay  it,  was  told  "  There 
is  nothing  against  you;  it  is  all  settled."  "  Why,"  he  would 
say,  "  how  is  that }  I  got  some  things  from  you  not  long  ago, 
and  I  want  to  pay  the, bill."  "  There  is  nothing  against  you." 
"But  I  am  sure  I  got  something  here."  "There  is  nothing 
against  you  in  my  ledger  ;  some  one  else  has  come  and  paid 
it."  That  is  substitution.  Now  I  know  who  paid  my  spiritual 
debts.  It  was  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  And  God  looks  at  His 
ledger  and  there  is  nothing  against  us.  Christ  was  raised  up 
for  our  justification.  It  is  a  good  deal  better  to  be  justified 
than  pardoned.  Suppose  I  was  arrested  for  stealing  $1,000, 
tried  and  found  guilty,  but  suppose  the  judge  had  mercy  on  me 
and  pardoned  me.  I  would  come  out  of  prison,  but  it  would 
be  with  my  head  down.  I  had  been  found  guilty,  I  could  never 
face  the  world  again.  But  suppose  I  was  accused  of  stealing 
it,  but  it  could  not  be  proven,  and  when  the  case  came  on,  it 
was  found  I  had  not  done  anything  of  the  kind ;  then  I  would 
be  justified.  It  would  make  all  the  difference  in  the  world. 
Now  God  justifies  us  by  the  blood  of  His  Son      This  is  what 


THE  BLOOD.  135 

the  blood  does  —  sin  covered,  put  out  of  the  way,  and  nothing 
against  us.     Is  not  that  good  news  ? 
^..  Rev.  i.  5  :  "  Unto  Him  that  loved  us  and  washed  us  from 

-L.  our  sins  in  His  own  blood."  There  are  a  great  many  people  who 
wish  to  be  saved,  but  who  think  they  cannot  be  saved  until 
they  get  a  little  better.  I  met  a  young  man  in  the  inquiry- 
room  last  night  who  was  anxious  to  be  saved,  but  he  thought 
he  couW  not  be,  because  he  was  not  good  enough.  If  you  are 
going  to  wait  till  you  get  rid  of  your  sins,  you  will  never  be 
saved.  You  cannot  get  rid  of  one  sin.  Instead  of  getting 
better  you  will  get  worse.  But  thanks  be  to  God,  He  loves  us 
even  in  our  sins,  even  before  He  saves  us  from  our  sins.  "He 
hath  loved  us  and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  His  own  blood.'* 
Lm^ed  us  first,  then  washed  us.  But  if  we  attempt  to  wash  our- 
selves we  will  make  wretched  work  of  it.  The  blood  will  cover 
it  all  up  if  we  only  trust  ourselves  to  Christ.  Who  shall  lay 
anything  to  the  charge  of  God's  elect  ?  If  He  has  justified  me 
it  is  enough.     Why  do  we  like  to  sing  that  old  hymn — 

'*  There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood 
Drawn  from  Immanuel's  veins?" 

Why  will  it  live  as  long  as  the  church  lives  on  earth }  Why 
will  it  never  die }  Why  do  you  hear  it  sung  all  over  Christen- 
dom. I  remember  how  it  used  to  thrill  my  soul  even  before  I 
was  converted.  I  could  not  tell  why.  Thank  God,  every  sin 
IS  lost  in  that  fountain.  You  will  find  that  all  these  hymns 
with  the  scarlet  thread  in  them  will  live.     There  is  that  grand 

old  hymn  : 

"  Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  fer  me, 
Let  me  hide  myself  in  Thee  ; 
Let  the  water  and  the  blood. 
From  Thy  riven  side  that  flowed, 
Be  of  8in  the  double  cure, 
Cleanse  me  from  its  guilt  and  power." 

That  speaks  of  the  crucified  Christ ;  it  will  never  get  worn 
out.     Then  there  is  — 

"  Ju^^t  as  I  am,  without  one  plea. 
But  that  Thy  blood  was  shed  for  me, 
And  that  Thou  bidst  me  come  to  Thee, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come." 


.26  THE  BLOOD. 

That  is  another  hymn  that  will  live ;  you  never  tire  of  it.  It 
will  be  sung  on  and  on,  as  long  as  the  church  is  on  earth.  I 
tell  you  why  these  hymns  are  so  precious ;  it  is  because  they 
tell  us  about  the  blood. 

Look  at  Matt.  xxvi.  28 ;  it  is  Christ's  own  testimony,  "  For 
this  is  my  blood  of  the  new  testament,  which  is  shed  for  many 
for  the  remission  of  sins."  Look  at  this  verse,  "  I  declare  unto 
you  the  gospel,  how  that  Christ  died  for  our  sins  according  to 
the  Scriptures."  Look  at  Heb.  ix.  22,  "And  without  shedding 
of  blood  is  no  remission."  I  would  like  to  ask  those  men 
who  do  not  believe  in  the  blood,  "  What  are  you  going  to  do  with 
your  sins } "  Would  you  insult  the  Almighty  by  offering  Him  the 
fruit  of  your  body  to  atone  for  them  ?  Can  a  ftian  atone  for  sin  } 
If  there  is  a  scoffer  here,  a  man  who  makes  light  of  the  blood,  I 
want  to  know  what  he  is  going  to  do.**  When  I  was  in  one  of 
your  cities,  a  gentleman  came  to  me  and  said,  '*  If  you  are  right, 
I  am  wrong  ;  and  if  I  am  right,  you  are  wrong."  I  saw  he  was 
a  minister,  and  I  said,  '*  Well,  I  never  heard  you  preach  ;  if 
you  have  heard  me  you  can  tell  what  the  difference  is.  Where 
do  we  differ!"  "Well,  you  preach  that  it  is  the  death  of 
Christ ;  I  preach  His  life.  I  tell  people  His  death  has  nothing 
to  do  with  it ;  you  tell  them  His  i*^"  has  nothing  to  do  with  their 
salvation,  and  that  His  dcu.in  only  will  save  them.  I  do  not 
believe  a  word  of  it."  "Well,"  I  said,  "  what  do  you  do  with 
this  passage,  *  Who  His  own  self  bare  our  sins  in  His  own  body 
on  the  tree  ? '  "  "  Well,  I  never  preached  on  that  text. "  "  What 
do  you  do  with  this  then,  *  Ye  are  not  redeemed  with  cor- 
ruptible things  as  silver  and  gold,  but  with  the  precious  blood 
of  Christ ' "  "I  never  preached  on  that  text  either,"  was  the 
reply.  "  Well,  what  do  you  do  with  this,  *  Without  shedding  of 
blood  there  is  no  remission  ?  '  "-  "  I  never  spoke  on  that,"  he 
said.  "What  do  you  do  with  this,  *  He  was  wounded  for  our 
transgressions.  He  was  bruised  for  our  iniquities,  and  the  chas- 
tisement of  our  peace  was  upon  Him ? '  "  "I  never  preached 
on  that  cither.''  What  do  you  preach,  then  ?"  I  asked.  He 
hesitated  for  a  little,  and  then  said,  "  I  preach  moral  essays.' 


THE  BLOOD.  isy 

**  You  leave  out  the  atonement !  "  "Yes."  "  Well,"  I  said, 
**  it  would  all  be  a  sham  to  me  if  I  did  that ;  I  could  not  under- 
stand it.  I  would  be  away  home  to-morrow.  I  would  not 
know  what  to  preach.  Moral  essays  on  Christ  without  His 
death  !  "  The  young  man  said,  "  Well,  it  does  seem  a  sham 
sometimes."  He  was  honest  enough  to  confess  that.  Why, 
the  whole  thing  is  a  myth  without  the  at-one-ment.  The  cruci- 
fixion of  Christ  is  the  foundation  of  the  whole  matter.  If  ■ 
man  is  unsound  on  the  blood,  he  is  unsound  in  everything. 
"  Without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remission." 

Turn  now  to  Heb.  x.  ii.  Hebrews  is  full  of  the  blood. 
"  And  every  priest  standeth  daily  ministering  and  offering  often- 
times the  same  sacrifices,  which  can  never  take  away  sins.  But 
this  man"  —  what  man? — the  man  Christ  Jesus,  "after  He 
had  offered  one  sacrifice  for  sins,  for  ever  sat  down  on  the  right 
hand  of  God."  One  sacrifice  for  sins  for  ever  !  He  has  of 
fered  as  a  sacrifice  Himself.  You  need  no  lambs  now,  no  bul- 
locks now.  The  High  Priest  has  offered  Himself.  The  high 
priest  of  old  could  not  take  his  seat ;  his  work  was  never  done. 
But  our  High  Priest  went  up  on  high,  and  took  his  seat  on  the 
right  hand  of  the  Father's  throne;  the  work  was  done.  "  It  is 
finished,"  He  said.  All  those  types  and  shadows  are  fulfilled 
in  Him,  and  now  they  have  vanished  away. 

Look  at  Mark  xiv.  24  :  "  This  is  my  blood  of  the  new  testa- 
ment which  is  shed  for  many."  These  are  Christ's  own  words. 
Take  that  in  connection  with  the  passage  I  read  from  Hebrews, 
"  Without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remission."  I  believe  if  a 
man  could  get  to  heaven  without  the  blood  of  Christ,  he  would 
not  be  happy  there.  He  could  not  join  in  the  great  song  that 
is  sung  around  the  throne  ;  he  could  not  sing  the  song  of  Moses 
and  the  Lamb ;  he  could  not  say  he  was  redeemed  by  the  blood 
of  the  Lamb.  You  would  see  him  away  in  some  corner;  he 
would  be  out  of  tune  with  the  rest ;  he  would  not  be  in  har- 
mony with  them,  and  he  would  not  wish  to  stay  there.  But  he 
could  not  get  there.  The  only  way  is  by  the  new  and  living 
way  that  Christ  has  opened. 


laS  THE  BLOOD. 

Turn  back  again  for  a  minute  to  Heb.  x.  19  :  "  Having,  there- 
fore, brethren,  boldness  to  enter  into  the  holiest  by  the  blood 
of  Jesus,  by  a  new  and  living  way  which  he  has  consecrated  for 
IS,  through  the  veil,  that  is  to  say.  His  flesh."  Those  Jews, 
before  Christ  died,  had  to  have  the  high  priest  intercede  iDr 
them.  He  used  to  go  in  once  a  year  into  the  holy  of  holies 
with  blood  to  make  intercession  ;  but  since  Christ,  our  great 
High  Priest,  came,  we  do  not  need  any  Aaron  to  intercede  for 
us.  When  Christ  died,  He  opened  a  new  and  living  way.  He 
made  us  all  kings  and  priests.  It  is  said  that  the  veil  that  was  rent 
was  His  flesh.  When  He  cried  on  the  cross,  "  It  is  finished," 
the  veil  of  the  temple  was  rent  in  twain.  God  seized  it  with 
I  lis  right  hand  and  tore  it  away.  No  veil  between  God  and 
'nan  now  !  We  need  no  bishop,  no  pope,  no  priest  to  intercede 
'or  us  now.  Christ  has  died,  yea,  is  risen  again.  Yes,  we  are 
ill  kings  and  priests  now  ;  we  can  go  straight  to  the  holy  oi 
"lolies  ourselves.  We  need  no  man  to  intercede  for  our  souls. 
The  moment  a  man  is  saved  by  the  blood,  he  becomes  a  king 
ind  a  priest.  God  calls  him  "My  son."  He  is  an  heir  of 
heaven  and  of  glory.  He  is  redeemed  by  the  blood,  he  is  made 
'ligh  by  the  blood.  He  gets  victory  over  the  world,  the  flesh, 
ind  the  devil,  by  the  blood. 

There  is  a  very  solemn  verse  in  Heb.  x.  28  :  **  He  that  de- 
s})ised  Moses'  law  died  without  mercy  under  two  or  three  wit- 
nesses; of  how  much  sorer  punishment,  suppose  ye,  shall  he  be 
thought  worthy,  who  hath  trodden  under  foot  the  Son  of  God, 
ii^.d  hath  counted  the  blood  of  the  covenant  wherewith  he  was 
sanctified  an  unholy  thing,  and  hath  done  despite  unto  the 
^pirit  of  grace?  "  If  a  man  despised  Moses'  law,  they  led  him 
i)iit  and  stoned  him  to  death.  Sinner,  let  me  ask  you,  what  are 
you  going  to  do  with  the  blood  of  God's  only  Son  }  I  tell  you 
it  is  a  terrible  thing  to  make  light  of  the  blood,  to  laugh  and 
ridicule  the  doctrine  of  the  blood.  I  would  rather  fall  dead  on 
this  platform  than  do  such  a  thing.  It  makes  my  heart  shud- 
der when  I  hear  men  speak  lightly  of  it.  Some  time  ago  a 
very  solemn  thought  came  stealing  over  me,  and   made  a  deep 


THE  BLOOD,  iS9 

impression  on  my  mind,  ilic  (jnly  ihing  that  Christ  left  cf  His 
,  body  on  the  earth  was  His  blood.  His  flesh  and  bones  He 
took  away.  But  when  He  went  up  on  high,  He  left  His  blood 
down  here.  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  the  blood }  Arc 
you  going  to  make  light  of  this  blood,  to  trample  on  it  ?  Ma\ 
God  give  us  all  a  glimpse  of  Christ  crucified  to-night. 

Look  at  the  book  of  Revelation  ;  you  will  find  the  blood  spo- 
ken of  again  and  again.  "  They  overcame  by  the  blood  of  the 
I.amb  and  the  word  of  their  testimony."  That  is  the  only  way 
to  overcome  the  devil,  the  lion  of  hell  —  by  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb.  He  knows  that  the  moment  a  poor  sinner  flees  to  the 
biood  he  is  beyond  his  reach. 

As  I  have  travelled  up  and  down  Christendom  I  have  found 
out  that  a  minister  who  gives  a  clear  sound  upon  this  doctrine  is 
successful.  A  man  who  covers  up  the  cross,  though  he  may  be 
an  intellectual  man,  and  draw  large  crowds,  will  have  no  life 
there,  and  his  church  will  be  but  a  gilded  sepulchre.  Those 
men  who  preach  the  doctrine  of  the  cross,  and  hold  up  Christ 
as  the  sinner's  only  hope  of  heaven,  and  as  the  sinner's  only 
substitute,  who  make  much  of  the  blood,  God  honours,  and 
souls  are  always  saved  in  the  church  where  the  blood  of  Christ 
is  preached.  May  God  help  us  to  make  much  of  the  blood  of 
His  Son.  It  cost  God  so  much  to  give  us  His  Son,  and  shall 
we  try  to  keep  Him  from  the  world  which  is  perishing  from  the 
want  of  Him  ?  The  world  can  get  along  without  us,  but  not 
without  Christ.  Let  us  preach  Christ  in  season  and  out  of  sea- 
son. Let  us  go  to  the  sick  and  dying,  and  hold  up  the  Saviour 
who  came  to  seek  and  save  them  —  who  died  to  redeem  them. 
"  They  overcame  by  the  blood  of  the  Lamb  and  the  word  of 
their  testimony." 

Once  more,  in  Revelation  vii.  14  :  "  These  are  they  which 
came  out  of  great  tribulation,  and  have  washed  their  robes  and 
made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb."  Sinner,  how  are 
you  going  to  get  your  robes  clean  if  you  do  not  get  them  washed 
in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb  .?  How  are  you  going  to  wash  them  ? 
Can  you  make  them  clean  ?  I  pray  that  at  least  we  may  all  gel 
9 


ISO 


THE  BLOOD. 


back  to  the  paradise  above.  There  they  are  singing  the  ^weet 
song  of  redemption.  May  it  be  the  happy  lot  of  each  of  us  to 
join  them.  It  will  be  a  few  years  at  the  longest  before  we  shall 
be  there  to  sing  the  sweet  song  of  Moses  and  the  Lamb.  But 
if  you  die  without  Christ,  without  hope,  and  witl  out  God,  where 
will  you  be  ?  O  sinner,  be  wise  ;  do  not  make  light  of  the  blood. 
An  aged  minister  of  the  gospel,  on  his  dying  bed,  said,  **  Bring 
me  the  Bible."  Putting  his  finger  upon  the  verse,  "  The  blood 
of  Jesus  Christ,  his  Son,  cleanseth  us  from  all  sin,"  he  said,  "  I 
die  in  the  hope  of  this  verse."  It  was  not  his  fifty  years'  preach- 
ing, but  the  blood  of  Christ.  May  God  grant  that  when  we 
come  at  last  to  stand  before  the  great  white  throne,  our  robes 
may  be  washed  in  the  cleansing  blood  of  Christ ! 


HEAVEN. 

Part  I. 


SOME  time  ago,  on  my  way  to  a  meeting,  a  fnend  asked  what 
was  to  be  my  subject.  I  told  him  I  thought  I  would  preach 
about  Heaven.  He  seemed  much  disappomted,  and  rephed 
that  he  was  in  hopes  I  should  talk  about  somethmg  practical, 
and  that  there  would  be  time  enough  to  talk  about  heaven  when 

we  got  there.  ,  .        ,      ^ 

Now,  I  think  if  God  did  not  want  us  to  know  anything  about 
heaven!  He  would  not  have  written  so  much  about  it.  And  if 
heaven  is  to  be  our  future  home,  we  should  try  to  learn  all  we 
can  about  it,  so  that  we  may  be  living  more  for  it.  If  we  were 
about  to  emigrate  to  a  distant  land,  we  should  never  tire  hear- 
ing about  it  We  should  wish  to  know  all  about  its  people,  its 
climate  and  resources,  its  schools  and  institutions,  its  advan- 
tages for  children,  and  its  prospects  for  business.  There  would 
be  nothing  relating  to  the  country  that  would  not  interest  us. 
And  when  we  are  going  to  spend  eternity  in  another  world,  can 
we  know  or  hear  too  much  about  it  ? 

Christians  are  often  asked  why  they  address  their  prayers 
upwards,  as  if  God's  dwelling-place  were  any  more  above  than 
around  them.  But  I  think  it  is  right  to  locate  heaven,  and  to 
locate  it  aboi^^.  In  the  twenty-sixth  chapter  of  Deuteronomy 
we  read,  "  Look  down  from  thy  holy  habitation,  from  heaven, 
and  bless  thy  people  Israel."  Look  (kwn  from  heaven.  Then 
in  Genesii  we  are  told  that  God  "  went  up  "  from  talking  with 


133  HEAVED 

Abraham  —  weni  up.  And  Christ  himself,  the  only  One  who 
can  really  tell  us  about  heaven,  for  He  has  been  there,  what 
does  He  say?  In  the  third  chapter  of  John  you  find  the 
words,  "  No  man  hath  ascended  up  to  heaven  but  He  that  came 
doum  from  heaven,  even  the  Son  of  Man  which  is  in  heaven." 
In  the  seventh  chapter  of  Mark,  again  we  are  told  that, "  look- 
ing up  to  heaven,  He  sighed."  And  when  His  work  was  over 
here,  and  He  was  just  returning  to  the  many  mansions  of  His 
Father's  house,  standing  in  the  midst  of  the  loved  ones  for 
whom  He  was  going  to  prepare  a  place,  "  Behold,  He  was 
taken  up,  and  a  cloud  received  Him  out  of  their  sight." 

Heaven  is  the  dwelling-place  of  God.  This,  after  all,  is  the 
great  point.  It  matters  little  how  far  away  it  is.  God  is  there, 
and  that  is  enough.  And  we  may  be  sure  that  it  is  -not  so  far 
away  but  that  He  can  hear  the  humblest  sigh  of  prayer  or 
watch  the  gathering  tears  of  penitence  trembling  on  the  sinner's 
cheek.  And  man,  too,  can  look  from  earth  to  heaven.  When 
God  opens  his  eyes,  and  draws  aside  the  veil,  like  Stephen,  He 
can  see  right  into  it.  "  He  being  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost, 
looked  up  steadfastly  into  heaven,  and  saw  the  glory  of  God, 
and  Jesus  standing  on  the  ri>;ht  hand  of  God,  and  said, 
Behold,  I  see  the  heavens  opened,  and  the  Son  of  Man  stand- 
ing on  the  right  hand  of  God."  Stephen  found  out  the  secret 
of  the  attractiveness  of  heaven.  He  saw  Christ  at  the  right 
hand  of  God.  The  King  in  his  beauty  was  there,  and  thai 
makes  heaven. 

Some  one  being  asked  what  he  expected  to  do  when  he  got 
to  heaven,  replied  that  he  would  take  one  good  look  at  Christ 
for  about  five  hundred  years,  and  then  he  might  look  round 
and  see  the  apostles,  and  saints,  and  martyrs.  And  it  seems  to 
me  that  one  glinij)se  of  Him  who  loved  us,  and  washed  us  in 
His  blood,  will  repay  us  for  all  we  can  suffer  here  in  this  dark 
world. 

A  little  child,  whose  mother  was  dying,  was  taken  away  to 
live  with  some  friends  because  it  was  thought  she  did  not  under- 
stand what   death  is.     All    the   while   the   child  wanted   to  go 


HEAVEN.  133 

home  and  see  her  mother.  At  last,  when  the  funeral  was  over, 
and  she  was  taken  home,  she  ran  all  over  the  house,  searching 
the  sitting-room,  the  parlour,  the  library,  and  the  bedrooms. 
She  went  from  one  end  of  the  house  to  the  other,  and  when 
she  could  not  find  her  mother,  she  wished  to  be  taken  back  to 
where  they  brought  her  from.  Home  had  lost  its  attractions 
for  the  child  when  her  mother  was  not  there.  My  friends,  the 
great  attraction  in  heaven  will  not  be  its  pearly  gates,  its  golden 
streets,  nor  its  choir  of  angels,  but  it  will  be  Christ.  Heaven 
would  be  no  heaven  if  Christ  were  not  there.  But  we  know 
that  He  is  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Father,  and  those  eyes  shall 
gaze  on  Him  by-and-by;  and  we  shall  be  satisfied  when  we 
awake  with  his  likeness. 

But  the  company  of  heaven  is  more  varied  still  —  our  friends  1 
are  there.  God  the  Father  is  there,  Christ  the  Son  is  there, ' 
angels  are  there,  and  in  Rev.  vii.  we  read  of  "  a  great  multitude, 
which  no  man  could  number,  of  all  nations,  and  kindreds,  and 
people  and  tongues."  We  read  of  the  redeemed  who  stand 
"  before  the  throne,  and  before  the  Lamb,  clothed  with  white 
robes,  and  palms  in  their  hands."  Yes,  we  have  friends  in 
heaVen. 

A  bereaved  father  asked  me  the  other  day  if  I  thought  the 
little  one  he  had  lost  had  gone  to  be  with  Jesus.  I  could  only 
tell  him  what  David  said  when  he  lost  his  son,  "  I  shall  go  to 
him,  but  he  shall  not  return  to  me."  It  is  a  very  sweet  thought 
to  me,  and  it  must  be  to  you  also  who  have  lost  little  ones,  that 
the  King  can  take  better  care  of  them  than  we  can.  If  we  could 
look  into  the  eternal  city  we  should  see  the  Shepherd  leading 
them  by  the  green  pastures  and  the  still  waters.  He  will  care 
for  each  little  lost  lamb  Himself  far  better  than  its  own  fond 
mother ;  and  is  it  not  sweeter  for  them  to  be  for  ever  with  the 
Lord  than  down  in  this  sad  land  of  suffering  and  sin.^  Our 
friends  are  not  lost,  just  gone  before.  They  have  had  "  the 
desire  to  depart  and  to  be  with  Christ,  which  is  far  better,"  and 
He  has  gratified  it.  Although  to  live  was  to  live  for  Christ, 
yet  to  be  with  Him,  was,  even  with  Paul,  "far  better." 


134  HEA  VEN. 

But  there  is  more  in  heaven  still.  Once  the  disciples  had 
been  out  preaching  and  met  with  wonderful  success.  They  had 
great  power,  had  cast  out  devils,  and  worked  many  miracles. 
They  came  back  greatly  elated.  Like  workers  in  a  great  revival, 
they  say  to  one  another,  "  Is  not  this  glorious  ?  "  But  Christ 
says,  "  Do  not  rejoice  at  that.  I  will  tell  you  what  to  rejoice 
about.  In  this  rejoice  not,  that  the  spirits  are  subject  to  you, 
but  rather  rejoice  XhdX  your  names  are  written  in  heaven.''  What 
a  glorious  thought  is  this }  Our  names  are  written  in  heaven. 
We  may  be  sure  of  it.  If  the  children  of  God  are  not  to  knou^ 
that  their  names  are  written  in  heaven  how  are  they  to  rejoice } 
If  there  had  been  any  doubt  about  it,  how  could  the  disciples 
have  rejoiced  when  Christ  told  them  to  rejoice  ?  It  is  our  priv- 
ilege, if  we  are  Christians,  not  only  to  know  it,  to  be  quite  sure 
of  it,  but  to  rejoice  in  it. 

The  grand  question  of  life  is,  Is  my  name  written  in  heaven  t 
Is  my  name  in  the  Book  of  Life  1  Not,  Is  it  in  the  Church  rec- 
ord! That  record  may  not  be  kept  in  the  same  way  that  the 
record  in  heaven  is  kept.  And  there  may  be  names  in  the 
Church  record  which  have  never  been  written  in  heaven.  But 
it  is  God's  record  we  are  talking  about.  God  keeps  a  record, 
a  book  of  the  lost  and  a  book  of  the  saved,  a  book  of  the  living 
and  a  book  of  the  dead.  Which  book  is  your  name  in  1  Can 
you  rejoice  this  moment  that  your  name  is  written  in  the  Book 
of  Life  ?  Weigh  the  question  well.  It  is  very  important.  For 
"  Whosoever  was  not  found  written  in  the  Book  of  Life  was  cast 
into  the  lake  of  fire."  "And  there  shall  in  no  wise  enter  into 
it  anything  that  defileth  it,  neither  whatsoever  worketh  an  abom- 
ination or  maketh  a  lie ;  but  they  which  are  written  in  the 
Lamb's  Book  of  Life." 

Some  friends,  lately,  in  traveling,  arrived  at  an  English  hotel, 
but  found  that  it  had  been  full  for  days.  They  were  turning 
away  to  seek  accommodation  elsewhere,  when  a  lady  of  the 
party  bade  the  others  adieu,  and  expressed  her  intention  to 
remain.  "  How  can  that  be,"  they  asked,  '*  when  you  hear  the 
hotel  is  full  ?  '*    "  Oh,"  she  replied,  "  I  telegraphed  on  ahead  a 


HBAVEI^.  135 

number  of  days  ago,  and  my  room  has  been  secured."  M> 
friend,  send  on  your  name  ahead,  and  the  door  of  heaven  can 
never  be  shut  against  you.  Be  sure  it  is  a  wise  precaution. 
Then  everyting  will  be  ready  for  you.  And  when  the  journey 
of  life  is  over,  you  will  mount  up  as  with  angel  wings,  and 
inherit  the  kingdom  prepared  from  the  foundation  of  the  world. 
Many  are  spending  their  time  and  strength  for  a  home  down 
here,  with  its  shallow  luxuries  and  fleeting  joys.  But  what  will 
all  the  mansions  of  earth  do  for  you,  if  you  have  secured  no 
title  to  a  mansion  in  the  sky  ? 

A  soldier,  wounded  during  our  last  war,  lay  dying  in  his  cot. 
Suddenly  the  deathlike  stillness  of  the  room  was  broken  by  the 
cry,  "  Here  !  Here  !  "  which  burst  from  the  lips  of  the  dying 
man.  Friends  rushed  to  the  spot  and  asked  what  he  wanted. 
'*  Hark,"  he  said,  "  they  are  calling  the  roll  of  heaven,  and  I  am 
answering  to  my  name."  In  a  few  moments  once  more  he 
whispered  "  Here !"  and  passedrinto  the  presence  of  the  King. 

If  we  have  made  sure  that  our  own  names  are  written  in 
heaven,  the  next  most  important  thing  is  to  be  sure  that  our 
children's  names  are  there.  The  promise  is  not  unto  you  only 
but  unto  your  children.  Mother,  is  the  name  of  that  boy  of 
your's  written  in  the  Lamb's  Book  of  life  ?  Is  it  not  better  that 
your  children's  names  should  be  written  there,  than  that  you 
should  secure  for  them  great  possessions  on  this  dark  earth  ?  Oh, 
I  pity  the  son  who  has  never  had  an  interest  beyond  the  grave ; 
but  more  the  mother  who  has  never  told  him  of  the  rest  that 
remaineth  for  the  people  of  God.  May  God  make  fathers  and 
mothers  more  faithful  and  true  to  their  solemn  charge,  that 
their  children  may  grow  up  to  be  a  blessing  to  the  world,  and 
that  they  meet  at  last,  an  unbroken  circle,  in  heaven ! 

Whenever  I  think  about  this  subject,  two  fathers  come  before 
me.  One  lived  on  the  Mississippi  river.  He  was  a  man  of 
great  wealth.  Yet  he  would  have  freely  given  it  all  could  he 
have  brought  back  his  eldest  boy  from  his  early  grave.  One  day 
that  boy  had  been  borne  home  unconscious.  They  did  every- 
thing that  man  could  do  to  restore  him,  but  in  vain.     "  He  must 


136  HEAVEI^. 

die,  said  the  doctor.  "  But,  doctor,"  said  the  agonized  father, 
"  can  you  do  nothing  to  bring  him  to  consciousness,  even  for  a 
moment  ? "  *'  That  may  be,"  said  the  doctor ;  "  but  he  can 
never  Uve."  Time  passed,  and  after  a  terrible  suspense  the 
father's  wish  was  gratified.  "  My  son,"  he  whispered,  "  the 
doctor  tells  me  you  are  dying."  "  Well,"  said  the  boy,  "  you 
never  prayed  for  me,  father;  won't  you  pray  for  my  lost  soul 
now  ?  "  The  father  wept.  It  was  true  he  had  never  prayed. 
He  was  a  stranger  to  God.  And  in  a  little  while  that  soul, 
unprayed  for,  passed  into  its  dark  eternity.  Oh,  father!  if 
your  boy  was  dying,  and  called  on  you  to  pray,  could  you  lift 
your  burdened  heart  to  heaven  .''  Have  you  learned  this  sweet- 
est lesson  of  heaven  or  earth,  to  know  and  hold  communion 
with  your  God  ?  And  before  this  evil  world  has  marked  your 
dearest  treasures  for  its  prey,  have  you  learned  to  lead  your 
httle  ones  to  a  children's  Christ  ? 

What  a  contrast  is  the  othe* father!  He,  too,  had  a  lovely 
boy,  and  one  day  he  came  home  to  find  him  at  the  gates  of 
death.  "  A  great  change  has  come  over  our  boy,"  said  the 
weeping  mother ;  "  he  has  only  been  a  little  ill  before,  but  it 
seems  now  as  if  he  were  dying  fast."  The  father  went  into  the 
room,  and  placed  his  hand  on  the  forehead  of  the  little  boy. 
He  could  see  the  boy  was  dying.  He  could  feel  the  cold  damp 
of  death.  "  My  son,  do  you  know  you  are  dying  J "  "  No  ;  am 
I  ?"  "  Yes ;  you  are  dying."  "  And  shall  I  die  to-day  ?  " 
"Yes,  my  boy,  you  cannot  live  till  night."  "Well,  then,  I  shall 
be  with  Jesus  to-night,  won't  I,  father  ?  "  "  Yes,  my  son,  you 
will  spend  to-night  with  the  Saviour."  As  he  turned  away,  the 
little  fellow  saw  the  tears  trickling  over  his  father's  cheeks. 
*'  Don't  weep  for  me,  father,"  he  said ;  "when  I  get  to  heaven 
I  will  go  right  to  Jesus,  and  tell  that  ever  since  I  can  remember 
you  have  tried  to  lead  me  to  Him."  God  has  given  me  one 
little  boy,  and  if  God  should  take  him,  I  would  rather  have  him 
carry  such  a  testimony  as  that  to  my  Master,  than  have  all  the 
wealth  of  the  world  rolled  at  his  feet. 

Mothers  and  fathers,  the  little  ones  may  begin  early;  be  in 


HEA  VEN.  137 

f  amest  with  them  now.  You  know  not  how  soon  you  may  be 
taken  from  them,  or  they  may  be  taken  from  you.  Therefore 
let  this  impression  be  made  upon  their  minds  that  you  care  for 
their  souls  a  million  times  more  than  for  their  worldly  pros- 
pects. And  if  you  yourself  have  never  thought  how  little  it 
would  profit  you  to  gain  the  whole  world  and  lose  your  own 
soul,  1  beseech  you  no\.  wo  let  another  sun  go  down  before  you 
are  able  to  say  that  your  name  has  been  in  heaven. 


HEAVBIN 

Part  II. 


Wk  have  seen  how  God  is  in  heaven,  for  it  is  his  dwelling 
place  ;  how  Christ  is  there,  for  He  is  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
Father ;  how  the  redeemed  saints  are  there ;  how  our  names 
are  there  ;  and  now,  if  we  are  true  Christians,  we  ought  to  have 
our  treasure  there.  We  are  commanded  to  "  Lay  up  for  our- 
selves treasures  in  heaven."  "  Lay  not  up  for  yourselves  treas- 
ures upon  earth,  where  moth  and  rust  doth  corrupt,  and  where 
thieves  break  through  and  steal ;  but  lay  up  for  yourselves  treas- 
ures in  heaven^  where  neither  moth  nor  rust  doth  corrupt,  and 
where  thieves  do  not  break  through  nor  steal." 

If  our  treasure  were  in  heaven  we  should  not  have  to  be  urg- 
ing men  to  live  for  heaven,  or  pleading  with  them  to  lift  their 
hearts  heavenward.  Their  hearts  would  be  there  already ; 
"  where  your  treasure  is  there  will  your  heart  be  also." 

It  does  not  take  long  to  find  out  where  a  man's  treasure  is, 
you  have  only  to  watch  where  his  heart  is.  The  man  who 
makes  politics  his  god,  see  how  his  face  lights  up  the  moment 
you  talk  about  it !  Here  is  a  man  whose  heart  is  set  upon 
business ;  put  him  in  the  way  of  making  a  few  thousands  even 
at  the  risk  of  losing  a  few  more,  and  you  have  done  him  the 
greatest  favour  in  the  world.  Here  is  another  whose  god  is 
pleasure ;  his  eye  sparkles  when  you  even  mention  it.  One 
would  think  from  such  men  that  there  is  nothing  worth  living 
for  but  politics,  and  business,  and  pleasure.  But  talk  to  a  child 
of  God  whose  treasures  are  in  heaven  ;  the  world  scarce  inter- 
ests him.     He  will  tell  you  how  he  has  here  no  continuing  city. 


HEA  VEN.  1.39 

how  he  is  but  a  stranger  and  a  pilgrim,  how.  heaven  is  his  home 
And  as  he  talks  of  Christ,  and  the  promises,  and  the  hope  be- 
yond the  grave,  you  see  that  he  enjoys  the  heavenly  calm  which 
the  world  knows  not  of. 

When  I  was  on  the  Pacific  Coast  I  spent  my  first  Sunday  in 
San  Francisco.  I  went  to  the  Sunday-school,  but  it  was  a  very 
wet  stormy  day,  and  so  few  teachers  or  scholars  made  their  ap- 
pearance, that  the  superintendent  was  in  doubt  whether  he 
should  not  send  them  home  again.  However,  as  they  had 
come  through  the  rain,  it  was  decided  to  go  on  with  the  lesson, 
and  I  was  asked  to  undertake  the  task.  The  subject  happened 
to  be,  "  Our  Treasures  in  Heaven."  The  blackboard  was  got 
ready,  and  being  a  poor  writer  myself,  I  handed  the  chalk  to 
one  of  the  teachers,  and  said  to  the  children,  "  Now,  I  want 
you  to  tell  me  some  earthly  treasures  ;  what  do  you  suppose 
men  think  most  of.?  "  Some  one  cried,  "Money."  "  Put  that 
down,"  I  said.  "  Anything  else  ?  "  "  Lands."  "  Put  that 
down."  Many  strange  things  were  said;  one  little  boy  said 
"  Rum,"  and  perhaps  he  was  nearer  the  truth  than  any  of  them, 
for  many  a  man  will  sell  soul  and  body,  and  business  and  family, 
and  home  arid  everything  else  for  drink  ;  and  when  the  cata- 
logue was  finished,  I  asked  them  next  to  give  me  a  list  oi  heav- 
enly treasures.  The  first  answer  was  "  Jesus  ;  "  and  as  we  went 
on  from  one  to  another,  we  found  that  the  treasures  of  heaven 
were  far  more  numerous  and  very  much  more  precious  than  all 
the  treasures  which  the  earth  could  give.  The  young  man  who 
was  writing  down  the  answers  was  an  unconverted  teacher. 
As  he  scanned  the  lists  and  compared  the  earthly  with  the 
heavenly,  he  stood  transfixed  with  shame.  "  What  a  fool  have 
I  been !  "  he  says  to  himself ;  "  I  have  come  to  this  Pacific 
Coast,  and  spent  my  substance  for  such  things  of  earth  !  "  And 
there  at  that  blackboard  he  vowed  to  God  that  for  the  rest  of 
his  life  his  heart  should  be  set  alone  upon  the  things  which  are 
above. 

Think  with  me  for  a  moment  what  earthly  treasures  are. 
Suppose  we  set  our  hearts  on  money ;  misfortune  darts  across 


140  ^      HEA  VEN. 

our  path  ;  there  is  the  short-lived  resistance,  the  brief  struggle 
soon  over,  which  the  world  knows  so  well,  and  we  are  beggars  ! 
Try  reputation.  In  an  evil  moment  we  may  lose  the  little  we 
have  ever  gained  ;  or  those  who  have  never  had  any  of  their 
own  may  steal  ours  away  with  the  tongue  of  slander.  If  to  our 
children  we  are  looking  for  our  chiefest  joys,  alas  for  our  hopes  ' 
for  death  may  carry  them  away  ;  or,  worse  than  death,  dis- 
grace may  count  them  with  the  living  dead.  Yes,  and  even 
grant  us  money,  and  our  fill  of  it,  or  reputation,  and  the  best 
the  world  has,  or  children,  the  loveliest  and  beloved  of  all ;  — 
is  it  not  true  that  we  have  but  provided  for  a  few  brief  years, 
while  the  great  eternity  has  been  uncared  for  or  forgotten  ? 
"  Lay  not  up  for  yourselves  treasures  an  earthy  It  looks  a  lit- 
«•  tie  stern,  perhaps,  but  it  must  be  right.  After  all,  all  that  a 
*  man  is  really  worth  is  what  he  has  got  in  heaven.  We  bring 
nothing  into  this  world,  and  it  is  certain  we  shall  carry  nothing 
out.  Therefore  God  says.  Lay  net.  The  Christian  who  does, 
suffers.  There  is  no  gain  in  it.  It  is  done  at  a  terrible  expense, 
the  heart's  desire  in  exchange  for  the  soul's  leanness.  Here 
are  two  ships  coming  up  a  river.  The  first,  full  sail,  cuts 
bravely  through  the  water ;  the  second  creeps  along,  towed  by 
another.  She  appears  to  be  on  the  point  of  sinking,  but  still 
she  floats.  Why  .?  Because  she  has  a  cargo  of  timber,  and  has 
become  waterlogged.  Lot  was  all  right  while  he  kept  with  his 
uncle  Abraham,  but  when  he  left  him,  and  got  down  into 
Sodom,  he  got  a  good  deal  of  this  world's  goods,  and  grew 
waterlogged.  So  it  is  with  many  Christians.  They  have  got 
waterlogged.  They  have  got  so  much  money  that  they  cannot 
get  into  the  harbour  themselves,  and  they  require  others  to  help 
them  in.  The  religious  life  gets  sluggish.  The  spiritual  pulse 
begins  to  beat  slow.  "  Why  is  it  ?  "  they  say,  "  that  we  do  not 
have  more  spiritual  power,  and  more  joy  in  the  Lord  ?  "  The 
secret  is  easily  found  out.  People  who  ask  these  questions  have 
got  their  treasure  here. 

When    men   go  up  in  balloons  they   take  with  them    bags 
of  sand  for  ballast,  and  when  they  want  to  rise  higher  thej 


HEAVEN.  141 

throw  out  some  of  the  sand.  Now  there  are  some  Christians 
who,  before  they  rise  higher,  will  have  to  throw  out  some  bal- 
last. It  may  be  money,  or  any  other  worldly  consideration, 
but  if  they  wish  to  rise,  they  must  get  rid  of  it.  If  you  have 
got  overloaded,  just  throw  out  a  little  money,  and  you  will 
mount  up  as  on  eagle's  wings.  Any  minister  will  tell  you  what 
to  do  with  it.  I  never  saw  any  department  of  the  Lord's  woik 
that  did  not  want  some  money. 

A  friend  of  mine  called  on  a  wealthy  Illinois  farmer,  to  get 
him  interested  in  a  soldiers'  mission.  He  took  him  up  on  the 
cupola  of  his  house,  and  said,  "  Look  yonder,  over  that  beauti- 
ful rolling  prairie,  that  is  all  mine,  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reacn. 
He  took  him  to  another  view,  and  pointing  over  the  rich  farms 
of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  showed  him  pasture  land  for  thirty 
miles  round,  with  large  herds  of  cattle,  and  horses,  and  sheep 
feeding.  "  They  are  all  mine,"  he  said  ;  "  I  have  made  it  all 
myself."  Then  he  pointed  proudly  towards  the  town,  and 
showed  him  streets,  and  piles  of  buildings,  and  a  great  hall 
named  after  himself,  and  said  once  more,  "  They  are  all  mine  ; 
I  came  here  a  poor  man,  but  my  own  industry  has  done  it 
all." 

My  friend  said  nothing ;  but  when  he  had  seen  all,  raising 
his  finger,  and  pointing  solemnly  to  the  sky,  "What,"  he  said, 
"  have  you  got  up  there  ?  "  The  rich  man's  countenance  fell. 
"Where?"  he  asked.  "In  heaven."  "I  have  got  nothing 
there."  Alas  !  he  had  lived  his  threescore  years  and  ten,  and 
must  soon  enter  eternity,  yet  he  had  no  treasure  there.  *'  Is  it 
not  strange,"  said  my  friend,  "  a  man  of  your  judgment  and 
forethought,  making  such  a  wreck  of  life, living  for  the  moment, 
on  borrowed  time,  to  die  a  beggar,  and  enter  eternity  a  pau- 
per ! "  But  a  few  months  after  that  he  died  as  he  had  lived, 
and  his  property  went  to  others. 

Oh  !  my  friends,  if  there  are  any  of  you  living  for  this  world 
alone,  remember  that  death  will  part  you  and  your  treasures 
for  ever.  Ask  yourself,  I  beseech  you,  what  provision  you 
have  made  for  the  other  life  ?     Is  it  on  that  little  boy  that  your 


»4a  HEAVEN. 

heart  is  set,  is  he  your  god,  the  idol  of  your  life  ?  Or  ia  it 
vour  money,  or  a  name,  or  dress,  or  a  position  in  society  ? 
Then  are  you  disobeying  the  law  of  Him  who  will  one  day  be 
vour  judge.     ''^ Lay  not  up  for  yourselves  treasures  on  earth." 

There  is  another  thought  I  would  like  you  to  look  at.  Our 
rest  is  to  be  in  heaven.  In  Heb.  iv.  9,  we  read,  "  There  remain- 
eth  therefore  a  rest  to  the  people  of  God."  That  is  another 
treasure  we  are  to  have  in  heaven.  Let  us  not  talk  of  rest 
down  here,  we  have  all  eternity  to  rest  in.  What  we  want  is  to 
be  faithful  in  the  few  months  or  years  that  we  are  here,  and 
then  we  shall  rest  as  eternal  ages  roll  on.  This  is  the  place 
for  work.  "  Blessed  are  the  dead  which  die  in  the  Lord,  for 
they  do  rest  from  their  labours,  and  their  works  do  follow 
them."  Our  works  shall  follow  us.  We  shall  leave  a  record 
behind  us,  if  we  are  only  faithful,  ere  the  night  comes.  We  can 
set  streams  running  here  in  this  dark  world  that  shall  flow  on 
after  we  have  gone  to  heaven. 

Twenty-five  hundred  years  have  passed  since  Daniel  lived, 
but  he  lives  to-day.  His  light  shines  out,  how  brightly,  all  over 
Christendom  !  We  love  to  read  his  life.  How  it  fires  and 
cheers  us  as  we  read  of  him  standing  up  for  God  in  Babylon. 
His  works  do  follow  him. 

A  good  many  people  have  made  a  sad  mistake.  They  think 
the  church  is  a  sort  of  resting-place.  They  unite  with  a  church, 
and  that  is  about  the  last  we  hear  of  them.  They  think  that  a 
good  Christian  has  nothing  more  to  do  than  get  a  good  pew  in  a 
respectable  place  of  worship,  and  all  the  work  after  that  is  to 
hear  two  sermons  a  week. 

But,  my  friends,  let  us  not  think  of  rest  and  pleasure  down 
here.  We  shall  rest  when  Christ  comes,  but  not  until  then. 
The  time  will  come  when  the  wicked  shall  cease  from  troubling, 
and  the  weary  be  at  rest. 

I  heard  of  a  Christian  who  did  not  succeed  in  his  work  so  well 
18  he  used  to,  and  he  got  Home-sick  and  wished  himself  de<id. 
One  night  he  dreamed  that  he  had  died,  and  was  carried  by  the 
tngcls  to  the  eternal  city.     As  he  went  along  the  crystal  pave- 


HEA  VEN.  143 

mcnt  of  heaven,  he  met  a  man  he  used  to  know,  and  they  went 
walking  down  the  golden  streets  together.  All  at  once  he 
noticed  every  one  looking  in  the  same  direction,  and  saw  One 
coming  up  who  was  fairer  than  the  sons  of  men.  It  was  his 
blessed  Redeemer.  As  the  chariot  came  opposite,  He  came 
forth,  and  beckoning  the  one  friend,  placed  him  in  His  own 
chariot-seat,  but  himself  He  led  aside,  and  pointing  over  the 
battlements  of  heaven,  "  Look  over  yonder,"  He  said,  "  what 
do  you  see  1  "  "  It  seems  as  if  I  see  the  dark  earth  I  have  come 
from."  "  What  else  ?  "  "  I  see  men  as  if  they  were  blindfolded, 
going  over  a  terrible  precipice  into  a  bottomless  pit."  "  Well," 
said  He,  "  will  you  remain  up  here,  and  enjoy  those  mansions 
that  I  have  prepared,  or  go  back  to  yon  dark  earth,  and  warn 
these  men,  and  tell  them  about  Me  and  my  Kingdom,  and  the 
rest  that  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God }  "  That  man  never 
wished  himself  dead  again.  He  yearned  to  live  as  long  as  ever 
he  could,  to  tell  men  of  heaven  and  of  Christ.  And  that  is  what 
God  wants  us  to  do.  We  shall  rest  by-and-by  ;  we  shall  have 
all  eternity  to  rest  in.  But  the  Church  is  the  place  for  work,  ' 
and  as  soon  as  our  work  is  done  there  will  be  the  voice  calling 
us,  "Come  up  hither." 

And  then  —  for  there  is  something  else  in  heaven  —  we  shall 
get  our  crown.  In  second  Timothy  fourth  and  eighth,  "  Hence- 
forth there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of  righteousness,  which 
the  Lord,  the  righteous  Judge  shall  give  me  at  that  day."  There 
is  a  crown  laid  up  for  every  one  of  His  children.  God  has 
promised  it.  "  Be  thou  faithful  unto  death,  and  I  will  give  thee 
a  crown  of  life."  What  did  Paul  run  for?  Salvation?  Ten 
thousand  times  no  ;  he  got  that  at  the  cross.  That  was  settled 
long  ago,  Paul  ran  for  a  crown.  There  will  be  a  great  many 
who  will  get  into  heaven,  but  they  will  have  no  crown  —  crown- 
less  Christians.  I  never  touch  that  life  of  Paul,  and  I  never 
hear  his  name  mentioned,  but  it  makes  me  feel  ashamed  of  my- 
self. If  I  may  be  allowed  the  expression,  Satan  got  hold  of  his 
match  when  he  got  hold  of  Paul.  He  never  got  him  off  the 
right  track.     He  kept  his  eye  right  on  Christ,  and  now  he  wears 


J 


144  ^£^  VE^' 

his  crown.  Paul!  what  are  you  so  ambitious  for  —  to  make  a 
name  ?  Why  are  you  so  desperately  in  earnest  ?  "  I  am  for 
my  crown,"  says  Paul.  Do  you  hear  what  they  say  about  you, 
"  A  mere  babbler  attempting  to  turn  the  world  upside  down }  " 
They  have  made  up  their  minds  to  kill  you.  The  Jews  say  all 
manner  of  things  against  you.  "  I  know  it,"  says  Paul,  "  but 
none  of  these  things  move  me." 

Take  your  stand  by  his  side  again.  He  has  received  thirty- 
nine  stripes ;  four  times  has  he  been  beaten,  and  now  he  is  to 
be  beaten  again.  "  Now,  if  you  get  out  of  this  difficulty,  what 
will  you  do,  Paul }  "  "  Do,"  says  Paul,  "  I  do  but  one  thing  — 
press  towards  the  mark  for  the  prize  of  the  high  calling."  What 
did  he  care  for  stripes  ?  "  You  don't  think,"  he  says,  "  that 
these  lig/if  afflictions  are  going  to  stop  me  ?  "  Why,  if  we  re- 
ceived one  stripe  on  our  backs,  what  a  whining!  I  do  not 
know  how  many  volumes  of  books  would  be  written  about  it. 
We  would  be  called  martyrs.  Yet  Paul  calls  them  "  these  light 
afflictions." 

Take  your  stand  there  again.  This  time  they  have  stoned 
him.  He  is  all  bruised  and  bleeding.  But  the  great  warrior 
rises  up  and  buckles  on  his  armour  again.  What  is  he  going  to 
do  ?  "  You  have  got  out  of  this,  Paul,  what  are  you  going  to  do 
next  ?  "  "  Do  !  "  he  cries  once  more  ;  "  I  do  but  om  thing  — 
press  towards  the  mark  for  the  prize.  I  do  not  want  to  lose 
my  crown."  Therefore  he  never  turns  to  the  right  hand  or  to 
the  left.  He  fixes  his  eye  right  on  the  crown.  "  Henceforth 
there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  which  cannot  fade." 

Look  at  him  again.  He  goes  to  Macedonia,  and  the  first 
thing  he  gets  in  Philippi  is  the  jail.  If  that  happened  to  any 
Christian  in  the  nineteenth  century  what  an  outcry  there  would 
be !  What  lamentation  there  would  be  inside  the  prison  ! 
What  scheming  to  get  out,  what  claims  for  damages  !  But  tha^ 
is  not  the  way  this  old  warrior  looks  at  k.  "  Silas !  "  he  says 
at  midnight ;  "  it  is  time  to  have  our  evening  worship."  And 
there,  in  that  prison  cell,  with  bleeding  backs  and  feet  fast  in  the 
stocks,  they  sing  their  psalm  of  praise.     It  would  be  about  the 


HEA  VEN.  145 

last  place  we  should  think  of  singing  praises  in,  and  if  we  did 
sing  it  would  be  some  melancholy  hymn !  But  not  so  Paul. 
"  If  God  wants  me  to  go  to  heaven  by  way  of  the  Philippian 
prison,"  he  says,  "it  is  all  the  same  tome;  rejoice  and  be 
exceeding  glad,  Silas.  I  thank  God  that  I  am  accounted  worthy 
to  suffer  for  Jesus'  sak:."  And  as  they  sang  their  praises  to 
God,  the  other  prisoners  heard  them ;  but,  what  was  far  more 
important,  the  Lord  heard  them,  and  the  old  prison  shook, 
their  chains  fell  off,  and  they  were  free  men  !  Talk  about  Alex- 
ander the  Great  making  the  world  tremble  with  his  armies. 
Here  is  a  little  tent-maker  who  makes  the  world  tremble  with- 
out any  army ! 

And  then  look  at  the  end  of  his  glorious  life.  He  was  in 
Rome  and  about  to  be  executed.  He  takes  up  his  pen  and 
writes  to  Timothy,  "  The  time  of  my  departure  is  at  hand,  I 
have  fought  a  good  fight,  I  have  kept  the  faith."  Thank  God 
he  kept  the  faith  !  He  did  not  break  away  and  teach  false 
doctrine.  He  believed  in  the  good  old  gospel  that  Christ  died, 
and  that  men  must  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  if  they 
would  be  saved.  "  Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown." 
I  should  like  to  have  been  in  Rome  when  Paul  was  there,  there 
was  something  there  worth  seeing  then.  I  should  like  to  have 
seen  him  walking  down  those  streets.  Rome  never  saw  such  a 
conqueror  as  that  man.  "  Paul !  you  are  going  to  execution ; 
are  you  not  sorry  you  gave  your  life  to  the  Lord  Jesus  }  You 
have  had  to  suffer  so  much,  stoned,  persecuted,  beaten  with 
many  stripes,  in  many  dangers  in  the  wilderness,  in  perils  by 
sea  and  land  —  are  you  not  sorry?  Would  you  give  your  life 
to  Christ  if  you  had  it  to  live  over  again  }  "  "  Yes,"  he  replies, 
"  if  I  had  ten  thousand  lives  I  would  willingly  give  them  all  fox 
His  dear  sake."  He  has  nothing  to  regret,  nothing  to  be  sorry 
for.  "  Sorry !  "  he  cries ;  "  I  thank  God  a  thousand  times  a 
day  that  I  ever  gave  myself  to  Him !  " 

Look  at  him  as  he  marches  along  to  execution  like  a  con- 
queror. If  you  had  taken  your  stand  by  his  side  you  might 
have  heard  him  whisper,  "  I  sTiall  be  absent  from  the  body  and 
10 


*y 


146  HEA  VEN. 

present  with  the  Lord  to-night."  He  has  no  worldly  wealth  to 
trouble  him  —  perhaps  a  few  tools  that  he  used  in  tent-mak- 
ing—  but  in  heaven  he  has  treasures  untold,  and  he  makes 
ready  to  go  for  his  crown.  You  can  see  a  smile  on  his  face  as 
he  lays  his  head  on  the  guillotine,  and  his  soul  leaps  into  the 
chariot  of  fire  that  stands  by  its  side.  I  can  JBaagine-them 
watching  for  him  from  the  battlements  of  heaven,  and  there  is 
a  cry  "Hallelujah!  "  as  he  sweeps  away  up  to  the  throne. 
And  I  can  hear  the  shout  of  the  Master  as  he  enters  the  pearly 
gates,  "  Well  done,  Paul ;  you  have  fought  a  good  fight,  you 
have  kept  the  faith,  you  have  finished  the  work  that  was  given 
you  to  do ;  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord !  "  And  the 
Master  rises  and  plants  the  crown  upon  his  brow,  but  he  takes 
it  and  casts  it  at  the  feet  of  his  Lord. 

Paul  got  his  reward  at  last.  Down  here  it  was  tribulation, 
but  I  have  an  idea  that  he  thanks  God  more  to-day  for  his 
afflictions  than  for  his  prosperity.  John  Bunyan  thanked  God 
more  for  Bedford  Jail  than  for  anything  that  ever  happened  to 
him.  And  Paul,  in  prison,  takes  out  his  pen  and  writes  these 
epistles  which  have  come  down  as  a  blessing  through  the  ages. 
The  streams  of  grace  that  Paul  set  running  are  running  still. 
Eighteen  hundred  years  have  passed  since  He  wrote  these 
epistles  to  the  churches,  but  their  fruits  are  still  going  up  from 
every  clime  and  nation.  And  so  if  things  go  against  us,  let  us 
thank  God.  Our  reward  is  yonder.  I  do  not  believe  a  man 
will  be  much  used  of  God  until  he  is  above  the  thought  of 
receiving  reward  from  men.  "  Rejoice  and  be  exceeding  glad, 
ioT  great  is  your  reward  in  heaven''  If  God  calls  it  "  great,"  it 
must  be  something  worth  having,  therefore  let  us  not  spoil  it 
by  seeking  the  world's  honours. 

Not  long  ago  there  lived  an  old  bed-ridden  saint,  and  a 
Christian  lady  who  visited  her  found  her  always  very  cheerful. 
This  visitor  had  a  lady  friend  of  wealth  who  constantly  looked 
on  the  dark  side  of  things,  and  was  always  cast  down  although 
ihe  waa  a  professed  Christian.  She  thought  it  would  do  this 
lady  good  to  see  the  bed-ridden  saint,  so  she  took  her  down  to 


HEAVEN.  147 

the  house.  She  lived  up  in  the  garret,  five  stories  up,  and  when 
they  had  got  to  the  first  story  the  lady  drew  up  her  dress  and 
said,  "  How  dark  and  filthy  it  is  !  "  "  It  is  better  higher  up," 
said  her  friend.  They  got  to  the  next  story,  and  it  was  no 
better ;  the  lady  complained  again,  but  her  friend  replied,  "  It's 
better  higher  up."  At  the  third  floor  it  seemed  still  worse, 
and  the  lady  kept  complaining,  but  her  friend  kept  saying,  "  It's 
better  higher  up."  At  last  they  got  to  the  fifth  story,  and  when 
they  went  into  the  sick-room,  there  was  a  nice  carpet  on  the 
floor,  there  were  flowering  plants  in  the  window,  and  little  birds 
singing.  And  there  they  found  this  bed-ridden  saint  —  one  of 
those  saints  whom  God  is  polishing  for  His  own  temple  —  just 
beaming  with  joy.  The  lady  said  to  her  "  It  must  be  very  hard 
for  you  to  lie  here."  She  smiled  and  said,  ^^  It's  better  higher 
up.''  Yes  !  And  if  things  go  against  us,  my  friends,  let  us  re- 
member that  "  it's  better  higher  up." 

I  was  going  to  New  Orleans  from  Chicago  a  few  years  ago, 
and  there  were  two  ladies  in  the  carriage  with  me.  They  got 
well  acquainted  with  one  another  by  the  time  they  reached 
Cairo,  where  one  lived,  the  other  was  going  on  to  New  Orleans. 
The  one  who  had  to  get  out  at  Cairo,  said  to  the  other,  "  I  wish 
you  would  stay  here  with  me  for  a  few  days,  I  like  your  com- 
pany so  much."  "  I  should  like  to  stay,"  replied  the  other, 
"  but  my  things  are  all  packed  up  and  have  gone  on  before ;  I 
have  no  clothes  but  those  I  am  wearing.  They  are  good  enough 
to  travel  in,  but  I  would  not  like  to  be  seen  in  company  with 
them."  Now  that  is  the  way  with  the  Christian.  He  is  away 
from  home  here,  his  treasure  has  gone  on  before,  and  anything 
is  good  enough  to  travel  in.  If  things  don't  go  on  smoothly  down 
here  we  need  not  be  too  particular,  they're  good  enough  to  travel 
in.  If  our  treasures  are  in  heaven  our  hearts  will  be  there, 
and  we  shall  be  living  as  pilgrims  and  strangers  on  the  earth 

One  thought  more.  What  occasions  joy  in  heaven  ?  The 
events  which  stir  this  world  I  believe  are  hardly  noticed  in 
heaven.  If  this  government  should  be  destroyed,  what  a  com- 
motion it  would  create  all  over  the   universe,    but    it   would 


14S 


HEA  VEN 


hardly  cause  a  ripple   in    that  country.     If  there  was  one  little 

boy  down  here  converted  to-day,  it  would  be  noticed  in  heaven. 

Jesus  Christ  said,   "  There  is  joy  in  heaven  over  vne  sinner  that 

repenteth." 

My  little  boy,  don't  you  want  to  become  a  lamb,  for  the  Shep- 
herd to  watch  over  and  care  for  ?  My  little  girl,  don't  you  want 
to  become  a  daughter  of  heaven,  a  follower  of  Christ  ? 

It  may  be  that  at  this  moment  every  battlement  of  heaven  is 
alive  with  the  redeemed.  There  is  a  sainted  mother  watching 
for  her  daughter  Daughter !  can  you  not  see  her  ?  She  is 
beckoning  you  now  to  the  better  land.  Have  you  no  response 
to  that  long-hushed  voice  which  has  prayed  for  you  so  often  ? 
And  for  you,  young  man,  are  there  no  voices  there  which 
prayed  for  you  f  and  are  there  none  whom  you  promised  once  to 
meet  again,  if  not  on  earth,  in  heaven  ?  And  which  of  you, 
fathers  and  mothers,  but  can  hear  in  the  angels'  chorus  the 
music  of  the  little  ones  you  loved,  and  who  have  winged  their 
way  to  be  in  glory  for  ever  with  the  Lord }  Oh  !  shall  we  not 
all  just  turn  our  backs  upon  the  world,  and  fall  on  our  knees, 
and  ask  God  for  Christ's  sake  to  write  down  our  name  in  the 
Lamb's  Book  of  Life,  so  that  we  and  those  we  love  may  Uv« 
*■  i*  ever  with  tb*'  Lord  ! 


THS  um. 


!t-c^ 


-t-    ;-  >     . 


